When it isn't Like it Should Be
by robinscorpiofan
Summary: Two months have passed since the Text Message Killer attacked, but the aftermath may be even worse than the killing spree. Port Charles is still trying to recover from the recent murders, and Emma Morgan is definitely taking it hardest. Mia Webber and Gabe Morgan are dealing with a surprise pregnancy, and Sam and Jason are struggling to keep it together. Sequel to That's Life!
1. You, Me, and The Bottle Makes Three

**Chapter 1: You, Me, and The Bottle Makes Three Tonight**

_Characters:_

_Rachel Janacek (Sam and Sonny)- 23_

_Emma Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 17_

_Gabe Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Maddie Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Katie Morgan (Sam and John; raised by Jason)- 14_

_Selena Morgan (Stella and Tyler; adopted by Sam and Jason)- 4_

_Morgan Corinthos (Carly and Sonny)- 29_

_Josslyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 22_

_Courtney Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 17_

_Connor Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 16_

_Jacelyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 14_

_Chloe J Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Christian Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Lukas Spencer (Maxie and Lucky)- 16_

_Leah Zacchara (Maxie and Johnny)- 15_

_Ava Zacchara (Maxie; adopted by Johnny)- 14_

_Daniel Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 17_

_Mia Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 16_

_Allie Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 14_

_Izzie Zacchara (Claudia)- 23_

_Clay Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 22_

_Zack Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 17_

_Hunter Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 16_

_Brittany Corinthos (Sonny and Brenda)- 16_

_Brenna Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 15_

_Lindsey Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 23_

_Nate Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 17_

_Noah Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 16_

_Spencer Cassadine (Nikolas and Courtney)- 28_

_Aiden Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 22_

_Paige Cassadine (Nikolas and Emily)- 17_

_Aubrey Crowell (Nadine and Nikolas)- 16_

_Nattie Cassadine (Nikolas and Brook Lynn)- 15_

_Colton Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 14_

_Wes Janacek (Kristina and Kiefer)- 16_

_Haley Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 16_

_Logan Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Livvie Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Molly Lansing Webber (Ric and Alexis)- 28_

_Addie Lansing (Ric and Elizabeth)- 16_

_Cameron Webber (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 29_

_Jake Spencer (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 24_

_Brendan Webber (Elizabeth)- 17_

_Stella Hunter (Elizabeth and Matt)- 16_

_Alec Barrett (Brenda and Aleksander)- 23_

_Ashlyn Falconeri (Lulu and Dante)- 15_

_Lila Rae Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 28_

_Jamie Quartermaine (Dillon and Georgie)- 17_

_Tanner Quartermaine (Dillon and Lulu)- 16_

_Julian Quartermaine (AJ)- 15_

_Grace Quartermaine (Skye)- 14_

_Tyler Drake (Lisa and Patrick)- 17_

_Ian Niles (Lisa)- 14_

_Carrie Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 15_

_Ryan Rosco (Faith)- 17_

_Dominic Rosco (Faith)- 14_

_Prue Webber (Molly and Cam)- 0_

_Henry Spencer (Lindsey and Jake)- 0_

_Sophia Janacek (Rachel and Kiefer)- 4_

_Kailey Franco (Franco)- 16_

_Reed Worth (Maggie)- 16_

_Rhiannon Deusa- 16_

_Lauren Grayson- 16_

_Brianna Edwards- 17_

_Deceased:_

_Bella Jacks (Jax and Brenda)- 15_

_Mason Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 15_

_Jazzie Corinthos (Sonny and Kate)- 14_

_Lola Zacchara (Claudia and Nikolas)- 14_

_Ben Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 15_

_Liam Drake (Elizabeth and Patrick)- 15_

_Matt Zacchara (Lulu and Johnny)- 17_

_Joey Falconeri (Dante and Brenda)- 17_

_Trevor Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 16_

_Taylor Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 14_

_Parker Ruiz (Manny)- 16_

_Corey Spinelli (Spinelli)- 15_

_Bailey Spencer (Lucky and Siobhan)- 15_

_Max Franco (Franco)- 15_

_Lily Mir (Leyla and Aleksander)- 15_

**Chloe J**

Seventeen year old Chloe J Hunter walked through the mall, tossing her blonde hair behind her shoulder. She was shopping with her two younger sisters. She walked in the middle, bags in both of her hands and her head held high. For her whole life, Chloe J has believed that if you look confident, you feel confident and she had_ definitely_ needed that confidence the past two months.

On her left was her blonde haired, blue eyed fifteen year old sister Leah Zacchara. In the past, Leah had been whiny and annoying, but since _everything_, she had calmed down. She was only holding two bags and had her phone in her right hand.

On Chloe J's right was her brown haired, brown eyed (the black sheep of the family, considering the rest of their mother's kids have blonde hair and blue eyes) fourteen year old sister Ava Zacchara. Ava had always been Chloe J's favorite sister, and that hadn't changed. She had matured a lot since her near death experience a few months ago, and the loss of a lot of their friends. She had two bags in each hand and was talking, though no one was really listening to her.

"…and it's so boring." Chloe J caught the end of Ava's sentence.

"What is?" she asked.

"School! Weren't you listening to anything I was saying?"

_School_. At the beginning of her senior year, Chloe J would have said she loved school. She loved to cheer and didn't even mind the learning as long as she had her friends, but now, all of that was changed. New York City School (shortened to NYCS) was overcrowded and underfunded, which didn't make for a very positive atmosphere. Chloe J always thought she was destined for better things, and she knew that meant high schools too. But since PCH wasn't rebuilt yet, all of the students were split (mostly by money status) between the two neighboring schools- NYCS and Madison Academy.

"Ugh, I hate school." Leah said, finally putting her phone away. "I miss Bren. It sucks not going to school with your best friend."

Chloe J knew exactly what that was like. While she was stuck in the dump that is NYCS, her best friend Emma Morgan was going to Madison, along with her sister Maddie Morgan and their other close friends Courtney and Connor Jacks and Zack and Brittany Corinthos. Sure, Chloe J had Nate Scorpio-Drake, Paige Cassadine, Emma's brother Gabe Morgan, Zack and Brittany's brother Hunter Corinthos, and (surprisingly) Brendan Webber to keep her company, but it just wasn't the same.

"You guys ready to go?" Chloe J questioned, now that her mood was completely brought down. Luckily, Leah and Ava both nodded. They went out to her car and threw their bags in the trunk. At one point, her younger sisters would have fought over the passenger's seat, but they realized that where you sat in a car really wasn't that important after the experience they had been through. Ava got it since Leah had it on the way there and that was that.

Chloe J usually would have sang along to the radio, but today she wasn't feeling it, so she turned it off.

"So, how are you and Brendan?" Leah asked. That was another thing that had changed. Normally, Chloe J would tell Leah to get out of her business and not talk to her about her personal life, but now that she knew how close you could be to dying any day, she didn't do that.

"Good."

"Is it official yet?" Ava demanded with a small smile. It was good to see her smile. Even though both of Ava's best friends, Katie Morgan and Jacelyn Jacks, went to NYCS (by choice, might she add), she hadn't really been that happy lately. She had been one of the first attacked and never fully bounced back after that.

"Nope." Chloe J didn't know what her deal was with Brendan. Back before _everything_, she hated him more than anyone. But now, she realized that she didn't need to spend time hating people. Brendan must have realized too because he quit being annoying and Chloe J actually thought he was an okay person.

"You guys are so lame!" Leah complained. "Why don't you just start actually dating?"

"I don't wanna rush into anything. I know that sounds cliché, but I was in a relationship with Ryan for a year and thought I was pregnant. Give me a break."

Chloe J hadn't originally intended to tell her family about her pregnancy scare, but she did after everything about the Text Message Killer came out. She didn't want to have any secrets with them and figured that was a pretty big one. Her mom, Maxie, was a little upset, but she got over it quickly.

The blonde pulled into her driveway and shut off the car. She popped the trunk and the three of them grabbed their bags.

When they got inside, Chloe J saw that they were the only ones there. Her mom and stepdad, Johnny, were probably at work and the rest of her siblings (her twin brother Christian, 16 year old brother Lukas, and 17 year old stepbrother Daniel) could drive, so they were usually gone, plus it was Saturday so everyone most likely had plans.

"I hate this stupid money stuff. Why can't we just go to Madison?" Leah complained.

There was the million dollar question. After the TMK was revealed, Maxie decided to take time off of her fashion line _Maxie Jones_ to spend more time with her family. All that had done was severely decrease her bank account, causing her and Johnny to have to send all of their children to NYCS instead of Madison. So while Emma was partying it up with hot rich boys, Chloe J was stuck using port-o-potties when she had to pee. Life sucked.

**Emma**

"Oh my God, life sucks." Emma Morgan groaned before another wave of nausea hit her. She was leaned over the toilet, her arms on the toilet seat, with her head practically in the bowl. She puked for the third time, feeling the tears sting her eyes. Suddenly, all the hair was gathered off the back of her neck and she felt a large hand rub her back gently.

When she figured she was done, she leaned back against the strong chest of one of her best friends, Zack Corinthos. Zack let her hair loose and ran a hand through it before pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"It's okay, Princess." He reassured her. "Are you done?"

"Ye…" Emma was cut off when she started to vomit again. Zack reacted quickly and picked up her hair, repeating his actions from before. She was so tired of getting sick. This time, when she knew for sure that she was done, she tried to stand, but her legs were too wobbly. Zack stood and reached his hand down, gently pulling her up.

Emma went over to the sink and reached in the cabinet under it, pulling out the mouthwash. She put some in her mouth and swished it around, trying to get rid of the horrible taste. Zack handed her a hair tie and she smiled gratefully before pulling her hair up. Their eyes met in the mirror and she nodded. They exited the bathroom together.

Emma saw that one of her best friends, Courtney Jacks, was still passed out on her bed, so she went over and layed next to her. Zack turned on the fan that was sitting near her door, knowing that if he didn't she would get too hot and freak out. They had fallen into this steady routine and he was used to it now. From Thursday to Sunday, this was his life.

"I'm never drinking again." Emma whimpered as soon as he layed down, turning to rest her head on his chest. Zack ran a hand through her dark brown hair. Emma knew that was a lie and she would most likely be in the same spot by this time tomorrow, but she didn't care.

A groan came from the other side of the bed and they knew Courtney was awake. Zack grabbed the bottle of Advil from the table next to his side of the bed and threw it over. Courtney mumbled a thank you and took some, drinking it with the bottle of water he had already put on the table next to her side.

Emma couldn't help but smile. Zack was really good at taking care of them. But hadn't he always? A long time ago, before Paige and Chloe J and Nate, it had just been the three of them. Everyone always looked over that, but Emma didn't. Zack and Courtney would always be her first friends and she knew she could always count on them.

"Hey!" Emma's younger sister Maddie Morgan walked into the room. "Oh my God, it smells like sweat and alcohol in here. What did you guys do?"

"We went to a bar last night." Emma told her. "Bad idea."

"_Really_ bad idea." Courtney agreed, rubbing her pounding temples. "I will never drink again."

"Me either."

Zack rolled his eyes. "Both of you say that every night, and then you drink again that same day. Shouldn't you just save your breath and your time and not even bother saying it?"

Maddie laughed at the trio. "You better clean up, Em. If Mom or Dad walk in, they're going to know exactly what happened last night."

Zack smiled. "They probably knew when they heard Courtney fall down the stairs."

"Is that why my butt hurts?" Courtney asked, sitting up so she could see Zack over Emma.

"See, this is why the Dream Team needs to stick together. We all balance out each other's craziness." Maddie said.

"Yeah, then Mia got pregnant, Gabe became Dedicated Baby Daddy, Nate, Chloe J, and Paige became too good for parties, and Brittany, Hunter, and Connor seem like they're never around anymore." Zack reminded her.

Emma attempted to roll her eyes, but stopped because it hurt her head too much. "Chloe, Paige, and Nate didn't become too good for parties."

"Em, when is the last time they've come with us? We used to invite them all the time." Courtney told her. "I guess the Dream Team became the Three Blind Mice."

"Three Blind Mice?" Maddie asked with a laugh.

"Yep. Cause when you drink enough, you black out and you're pretty much blind. That's our thing now."

"Wow, and what am I?"

"You're…Maddie. I dunno, it's too early in the morning for this." Courtney fell back against the pillows again.

"Mads, next time will you come out with us?" Zack questioned. "I can't handle taking care of both of these losers all by myself."

Emma hit him, but it wasn't very hard because her eyes were closed and she nearly missed. "Shut up, Zackary."

"Keep talking, baby girl. We'll see whose helping you when you're throwing up again."

"Funny, cause I'm not going to thr…" before she could even finish her sentence, Emma jumped over Zack and ran to the bathroom. They could hear her puking. Zack and Maddie started laughing.

"Guess I better go help her." Zack stood and followed, knowing there wasn't anything he wouldn't do for her.

**Mia**

"I…hate…puking." Mia Webber groaned as she pushed her sweaty hair away from her forehead. She was facing the toilet, which is next to the sink. Her boyfriend, Gabe Morgan, had his back up against the sink and he was watching her. There wasn't much he could do since she had tied her hair into a bun and she didn't really like to be touched when she threw up.

"It'll get better." He promised.

"Yeah, _you_ can say that because you're not the one going through it." Mia scooted back so her back was against the wall across from the toilet. She tilted her head to lean it against the wall. "This is why teenagers shouldn't get pregnant. There is nothing good about it."

"Uh, bringing a life into this world? Having a beautiful baby? Let's face it, Mimi. With the way we look, our kid is bound to be gorgeous." Gabe gave her a cocky smile.

"You're such a dork." Mia's eyes were closed, but she knew exactly what face he was making. "That's great and everything, but I wish we could have waited a few years."

"_We_, huh? So what were you gonna do? Jump me in a couple years and force me to get you pregnant?"

"Will you shut up?" she was laughing now, but trying to hide it. "Besides, Gabriel, you know that you would have gotten down on your knees and cried if I said we couldn't be together."

"Probably."

Mia made gagging noises. "You're such a girl."

Gabe smiled. "Someone has to be."

"First of all, if you're calling me manly, good try because we both know there's nothing manly about me. Second, if you want to be the girl, then you carry this thing around inside of you for seven more months."

"Wow. Pregnancy hormones are already getting you."

"If you want to be slapped, just keep talking." They could hear the sound of vomiting from across the hall. "Will you tell your sister to stop puking? It's making me sick."

"Yeah, cause that makes sense."

"You don't understand because…"

"_You're not the one going through it_." Gabe mocked in a high pitched voice.

"My voice is not that high."

"I know, _manly_."

"Hey, you're the one who slept with and is dating the '_manly_' girl. Are you trying to tell me something? Are you secretly gay? Cause I'm all for you taking the kid and running off with your boyfriend."

"You know, the way you talk about our baby would make most people think you don't love it."

"_Most_ people? Not you?"

"I know your heart's not a black hole…you just have a huge black hole around it."

"Ha, you're so funny."

"Thanks, Mimi. That really means a lot." They could hear Gabe's bedroom door open.

"GET OUT!" they shouted in unison before bursting into laughter.

Katie Morgan opened the bathroom door. "God, if I didn't know any better, I would think it was the two of you that got wasted instead of Emma."

"Oh, so that's what's wrong with Pukes-A-Lot." Mia said.

"Yep. Her and Zack and Courtney all went to a bar last night, or at least that's what Maddie told me." Mia and Gabe both knew that meant there could be a whole lot more to the story; everyone had an unspoken rule that they would keep big details from the freshmen, Katie especially. Emma, Maddie, and Gabe were hoping that if she didn't hear stories of what they did, then she wouldn't do the crazy stuff they've done.

"Is there something you needed?" Gabe questioned as he stood up, reaching his hand down for Mia. She grabbed it and let him pull her up.

"Yeah, I was gonna ask you guys if you knew about any parties tonight. Jace, Ava, and I have nothing to do."

"Well, I'm off the partying market." Mia said, brushing past her and going into Gabe's room. She climbed onto his bed and sat, crossing her legs Indian style.

"You can still go. You just can't drink." Katie pointed out.

"I can't do anything until I finish my schoolwork." Mia grabbed her laptop from the side table and opened it up.

"You haven't done your work?" Gabe asked.

"Not yet. I was gonna do it yesterday, but then I didn't feel like it."

"This is why you shouldn't have chosen homeschooling. You don't have enough self-discipline." Gabe looked at Katie. "You should ask Emma about parties. She seems to know where all of them are lately."

"Okay. See ya later." She walked out of the bedroom.

"Mia, you need to keep up on your work so that when PCH is rebuilt, you can go there."

"I know, but it's so hard! I get so tired, or I start puking, or I just can't focus! I have more important things to worry about than history and math."

"You can't be a doctor if you don't finish high school, Mimi." He reminded her.

"Who says I wanna be a doctor?"

"As much as you tell everyone you don't want to be like your father, I know you want to be a doctor."

"Maybe. I don't really know yet. Right now, I just wanna do my schoolwork, okay?"

Gabe knew that meant she had reached her limit with talking. "Okay. I'm gonna go downstairs and get something to eat. You want anything?" she shook her head. He kissed her forehead and walked out.

**Maddie**

"Hey." Maddie walked into Kelly's, sitting down at a table.

"Hi." Connor Jacks grinned up at her. For her whole life, he had been her best friend, and now, he was her boyfriend. It was a longtime coming, and neither of them could be happier.

"Have you seen Courtney?" she asked him.

"No, she didn't come home last night. I figured she spent the night with Paige or something. Why?"

"She and Emma got completely wasted at a bar last night. Zack was with them."

"Is she okay?"

"Yeah. They're both hungover, but Zack has become an expert in handling that."

Mike came over to them. "Hey guys. What can I get ya?"

"I'll take orange juice, waffles, and strawberries, please." Maddie ordered.

"I'll have bacon, scrambled eggs, toast, and orange juice." Connor closed both of their menus (they hadn't even had to use them; all the kids in Port Charles had practically memorized the Kelly's menu) and handed them to the old man.

"Coming right up." He smiled at the sixteen year olds and went back to the counter.

"So, what are you doing tonight?" Connor asked. "Any good parties happening?"

"Probably not." Maddie scoffed. "All these Madison preps are too good for partying."

All of the PCH students hated Madison. The students there were stuck up and judged them because of the fact that they went to the same school as a serial killer. The Quartermaine children (even Maddie and Emma) got it a lot worse because they had been related to Trevor Alcazar, aka the Text Message Killer. They took it with their heads held high, and no one associated with any of the other students. The PCH kids stuck together, especially the ones in the Crew, and ignored the rest of the world.

Connor laughed. "All they would drink anyway is their Champaign and wine coolers. No one can party like the Crew."

"Got that right." Maddie smiled at Mike as he brought over their food. "Thank you."

"Thanks, Mike." Connor started eating his eggs. "Well what if we did it like Emma and Court and went to a bar? Me, you, Britt, Gabe, Hunter, Mia…"

"Mia is definitely not going to go for that." Maddie interrupted.

"I never thought I would be able to call her Buzz Kill."

"Becoming a mother has changed her. The baby might not be here yet, but I'm glad that she's maturing." Maddie cut her waffles. "Even though it is kinda boring without her."

"We need to have a party at the Enchantment one of these days. Just invite the PCH kids, maybe a couple people from NYCS and Madison that we can actually stand."

Maddie couldn't help but think of the last party that had happened at the Enchantment. Mia had been attacked, starting off the chain of the Text Message Killer.

"Maybe somewhere else." Connor suggested, understanding her fears. They hadn't seen Mia that night (they, along with Courtney, were drunk and passed out), but they saw her afterwards, and they saw the aftermath. No one was ready to relive that. "What about the Metro Court?"

"Connor, how easy do you think it's gonna be to smuggle drinks into your mom's hotel?"

"Right. We'll just have to be extra stealthy. Spiked punch and all that." He smiled. "Remember Trey Sanford's party last year? With the spiked punch and Katie got arrested for fighting with…" he trailed off, realizing that there would never be another Katie vs. Taylor fight. Taylor Corinthos had given her life for her cousin.

"It's never gonna get better, will it?" Maddie put down her fork and knife. "Every time I have a conversation, it reminds me of one of them. Corey was one of my friends when I was little. Bella was your little sister. Taylor, and even Trevor, was my cousin. We grew up with Jazzie and Lola. And Parker…"

Sometimes, Maddie wondered if dating Connor so soon after the murder of her ex-boyfriend was okay, but then she looked at him and felt that overwhelming calmness and protection, and she knew she made the right choice. She still missed Parker Ruiz, but she knew she would have to let him go someday.

"I don't think anyone has really healed." Connor said. "We're all still fighting against these demons, questioning why, why not. No one understands what all of the kids at PCH went through, but they're all so quick to judge us. How is that fair?"

"I wish I went to NYCS." Maddie stated. "They seem a lot more…tolerant."

"There's always gonna be someone, Mads." Connor smiled sadly and kept eating.

Maddie admired Connor's strength through the whole ordeal. Bella Jacks, his little sister, had been tied to a pole and drowned in a warehouse, while his niece, Taylor, had been burned to death. Even though he was dealing with his own feelings, he always put her first and tried to help her.

"Thank you, Connie."

"For what?"

"For always being there." She smiled at him and then started eating again.

**Brittany**

"You have got to be kidding me!" Brittany Corinthos groaned, banging her fist against the window of her car. "Why is this happening to me?"

"Well look at this." She turned around and came face to face with her half-brother (who is, long story, the same age as her, but from a different mother and they're not bitter about it), Hunter Corinthos. "Need some help, Britt?"

"Shut up and get my door unlocked."

Hunter laughed. "This is classic! Little Britty needs my help. But if I help you, what will you do for me?"

Brittany sighed. "What do you want?"

"Why do I have to want something?"

"First off, you just told me you want something. Second, why else would you happen to be walking around outside when I lock my keys in my car?"

"True." He shrugged. "I want you to buy me Chipotle."

"Okay…" Brittany gave him a strange look. They both had plenty of money; all of the Corinthos kids had bank cards connected to their father's account. She realized he probably just wanted to spend time with her, but didn't call him out on it. "Can you get my door unlocked now?"

"Sure." Hunter pulled the second set of keys to her car out of his pocket and unlocked the door. Brittany rolled her eyes, but opened it and got in. Hunter went to the passenger's side. They buckled their seatbelts and she backed out of the driveway.

"So I'm not gonna lie, Mom and Dad put me up to this." Hunter said, referring to their father, Sonny Corinthos, and his mother, Claudia Zacchara. "How's school?"

Brittany sighed. "School is…school."

"None of this is going on the record. I'll just tell them you're adjusting and you'd rather be at PCH, so they need to hurry with the rebuild."

Brittany nodded and then told him how she really felt. "I hate it so much. I don't even know how to describe it. Madison is filled with a bunch of know it all, rich snobs. I should have listened to you."

"Yeah, you should have." Hunter wasn't saying it to be rude, he was just pointing out facts. After PCH burned down, all of the students had been presented with three options- NYCS (anyone could go there), Madison (a private school with a large amount of tuition required), or homeschool. Hunter chose NYCS, while Brittany picked Madison, mostly because Maddie and Connor were going there. Hunter told her that the kids there weren't nice, but she brushed him off.

"They are downright mean to _everyone_ from PCH. Even Emma isn't fitting in, Hunter, and we both know that Emma can talk to anyone and fit in anywhere. They're bullies."

"Someone is bullying you? Who?" Hunter demanded.

"The whole school! None of them want us there. They think that we only go there because Dad threatened to kill the principal. And they talk about _him_…"

Brittany wasn't able to talk about Trevor, even though it was two months after everything happened. She still hadn't comprehended that her boyfriend had killed all those people, and she blamed herself for the deaths of Corey Spinelli, Lily Mir, Bailey Spencer, Lola Zacchara, Taylor Corinthos, Ben Lovett, and Liam Drake. If she had just run away with Trevor when he asked, he might have spared the rest of them. She couldn't stand knowing that she had been the cause of her stepsister Lola and niece Taylor's deaths.

"None of that's right for them to do, Britt. But what do you do?"

"I ignore it. We all do. What can we do? We can't take on the whole school."

"But you can stand up for yourself."

"You don't understand, Hunter. The principal never wanted any PCH students to be brought in, no matter how much money they have. He wants us all out of there and he won't hesitate to get rid of any of us if we get in fights or anything."

"Maybe that's for the better." Brittany pulled into the Chipotle parking lot. "What if you switch to home schooling?"

"Then they win. I've come too far to give in now."

**Paige**

Paige Cassadine sat in one of the many chairs in her father's meeting room. He usually only went in there for business, and apparently the Cassadine children had 'important matters to attend to', or at least that's what his text said.

Her younger sister, Nattie Cassadine, was next to her. Nattie hadn't been the same since everything happened. Her boyfriend, Liam Drake, was killed in the fire that burned the school down. She was still pretty emotional about the whole thing.

"Hey." Her oldest brother, Spencer Cassadine, entered, closing the door gently behind him. He took a seat across from Paige. Because of their age gap (Spencer is 28, Paige is 17), the two of them have never been close. He awkwardly drummed his fingers across the table.

"Do you know what this is going to be about?" Nattie asked, breaking the silence.

"Nope. I'm just as confused as you two."

Paige knew that probably wasn't true. Spencer had always been their father's favorite and he was involved in Cassadine Industries with him, so they were a lot closer than the others.

"Hey everybody." Aiden Cassadine walked in. His three siblings smiled at him. He sat down next to Spencer, across from Nattie. "Any idea what's happening?"

So maybe they didn't actually know. Usually, Aiden knew a lot about what was going on too.

The door opened again and the last two Cassadine siblings, Colton Cassadine and Aubrey Crowell, entered. Colton sat down on Spencer's other side, while Aubrey went to Paige's. The two girls shared a smile. They had only known they were sisters for a little over two months, but they still tried to have some sort of a relationship.

"Good, you're all here." Nikolas Cassadine walked into his office. He ran his hands over his face. The stress of business had really taken its toll on him. "I just wanted to talk to you all."

"Is it about my mom?" Nattie hopefully asked. Her mother, Brook Lynn Ashton, was a singer who had been on tour for the past couple of months. She had missed the whole TMK crisis and they had barely heard from her.

"I'm sorry, Natasha. It's not." Nattie sank back into her chair. Paige squeezed her hand and gave her a reassuring smile. "I just want you all to know that we need to come together, now more than ever, especially since your sister is gone."

Lola Zacchara, the fourteen year old daughter of Nikolas and Claudia, had been one of the many children killed by Trevor Alcazar. Even though he was the cousin of both Paige and Nattie, they hated him more than words can express for murdering their sister.

"Not to be rude, but why do you even care?" Colton asked. Everyone looked at him, but his eyes stayed locked on Nikolas. "You were barely around when she was alive. You've barely been there for _any _ of us. Paige has practically raised herself, and Nattie. Spencer's pretty much antisocial and is so awkward with all of us. Aiden and I grew up with a nut job of a mother who has only cared about what guy she's with, not her own children. And maybe you would have realized Aubrey was yours a lot sooner if you just paid attention." Colton stood, his chair falling over from the force of him slamming it back. He stormed out.

With both of them being fourteen, Colton and Lola had naturally been close. Losing her, along with his brother Liam from his mother and his sister Stella from his mother being in a coma, had changed him. Colton had seen the horrors of the world and even though Paige wished there was something she could do for him, she knew there wasn't.

"I'll talk to him." Nattie offered. She followed where her younger brother had gone.

"Dad, we all get where you're coming from, but I think our family is a little bit too broken now." Aiden said. "You've got Spencer and I, who talk to you and actually have a relationship with you. Then there's Nattie and Paige, who have practically raised themselves and only had each other. Colton and Lola were close and now she's gone, so Colton's alone. Aubrey was just thrown in after sixteen years of not having us. I don't think anything is going to change, no matter how much we say it will." He sighed. "Lola was my little sister. As hard as I try, I can't remember one little detail about her. Not _one_. I didn't know her favorite movie, favorite color, none of it. I barely knew my own sister, and now I never will because she's dead. It's been two months and none of us have even made an attempt to be closer. It won't happen."

Aiden went to leave, but Paige's voice stopped him. "_Titanic_."

"Huh?" he turned around to face her.

"Lola's favorite movie. It was _Titanic_. Her favorite color was purple. She hated cats. She was really close to her stepsister on Claudia's side, Jazzie, but we can't even go to her to find out more about Lola because Jazzie's dead too. She was okay at the piano, but never really had enough patience. She hated storms. She always wished that all of us could be close, like the Morgans or the Jacks'. She hated the distance we had." Paige looked at Nikolas. "As much as we all try, we're not going to be closer without you. So you need to step it up and act like the father we all deserve, or just leave because I'm sick and tired of trying so hard and then being let down every time you reject me." She left.

**Haley**

Sixteen year old Haley Lovett walked into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes tiredly. She opened them back up and was greeted with the face of her stepbrother, Wesley "Wes" Davis.

"Hey, Hales." He gave her his best lopsided grin.

"Hi." She reached for the box of cereal he was holding, but he quickly pulled it away. "Gimme it!"

Haley started to chase Wes around the island in the center of the kitchen. They stopped on opposite sides and Haley leaned across it, reaching for the box again.

"You know, from this angle, I can see perfectly down your shirt." Wes commented.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't just hear my _brother_ say that to my _sister_." Logan Davis came in, grabbing the box from Wes and handing it to Haley. She smiled triumphantly.

"_Your_ sister. Not _my_ sister." Wes reminded his younger half-brother.

"Besides, we weren't raised together. It's not weird." Haley dumped some cereal into a bowl and added milk. She sat on the counter to eat her breakfast.

"Your parents are married!" Logan cried. "You're siblings!"

"_Step_siblings." Haley corrected, shoving a spoonful of Captain Crunch into her mouth.

"It's just strange that you're dating."

"We're not dating." Haley said.

"Then what do you call…this?" he gestured between them.

"We're…talking."

"Yeah. Talking." Wes echoed.

Haley was really glad that her younger sister, Livvie, wasn't down here for this conversation. Out of the twins, Logan was definitely the more tolerable. Sometimes, his personality reminded her of her younger brother, Ben Lovett. He had died in the fire and she missed him like crazy. He was the only other person in the world that knew how crazy it was to be the child of Ethan Lovett and Lisa Niles.

Wes and Logan saw the faraway look in her eyes and knew that she was most likely thinking about Ben. She had taken his death the hardest, considering she had been the closest to him.

Haley thought about all of her siblings. Her father, Ethan Lovett, had married Kristina Davis. Wes is Kristina's son with her abusive ex, Kiefer, but they just found out about that a few months ago. Together, Ethan and Kristina have the fifteen year old twins, Logan and Olivia, who everyone calls Livvie.

Her mother, Lisa Niles, is a bit crazier. She had her first son, Tyler Drake, with the married Dr. Patrick Drake. She had been so crazy about getting a man that she slept with Ethan and Haley was born almost before Tyler had time to even get out of the womb. Ben followed the next year and he was a surprise; by that time, Ethan had already gotten with Kristina and she was pregnant with the twins. He stayed with her. Lisa had another son, Ian Niles, but no one knows for sure who his father is. Lisa had been reckless and crazy, so Ethan won custody and Haley and Ben had lived with him and Kristina for their whole lives. Now, it was just Haley.

"Maybe I'll talk to Tyler and Ian more." Haley said, trying to run the idea by Wes and Logan.

"Why?" Logan asked.

"Because time's too short, you know? Ben's gone and I'm scared that something might happen to one of them and I'll regret not ever really knowing them."

"I think it's a good idea." Logan approved.

"Wes?" Haley looked at him.

"If you think it's what you wanna do, then go for it. I'll support you no matter what."

"Thank you." She hugged Logan and then Wes, her hug lasting a bit longer for the latter. "I'm gonna go upstairs and get ready. I'm going to Addie's soon. See you guys later."

"Bye." Both of the boys said.

Logan started laughing. Wes turned to him. "What?"

"You can never threaten guys like 'don't hurt my sister' because then you'd be threatening yourself!" he said.

Wes rolled his eyes and left the room.

**Emma**

"Come downstairs. Your mom and I wanna talk to you." Jason told his daughter.

Emma closed her laptop and went to the living room. Sam, who is six months pregnant, was sitting on the couch, while Jason was standing near the fireplace.

"What?" she asked.

"That's exactly what we wanna talk about. Your attitude." Jason said.

Emma rolled her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"This! You've got a terrible attitude lately and we have no idea where it's coming from."

"Emma, you've always been such a sweet girl." Sam told her. "What's changed?"

"What's changed? Maybe I'm sick of people taking advantage of me and walking all over me! Maybe my boyfriend abused me, then my brother and some of my best friends beat him, and then got the whole serial killing spree blamed on them because my boyfriend died! Maybe I can't believe that I had to go to the funerals of not one, not two, but _fourteen_ of my classmates. People that I'm related to, people that I've grown up with, people that are my best friends' siblings! Maybe I don't understand what the tiny town of Port Charles did to deserve all this!"

"Emma…" Sam started.

"No! Maybe I'm a little bitter because I'm being _forced_ to go to a school where I'm constantly bullied and talked about and criticized, along with the rest of the PCH kids. I _hate_ Madison! I would rather never step foot in a school again than ever go back there."

"It'll get better." Jason promised.

"You've been saying that for two months and it's only getting worse! Did you know that Brenna's knee gave out last week and she was crying on the floor for help and not one person stopped to even see what was wrong? Or that Allie, Mia's sweet little sister who never talks bad about _anyone_, got locked in the girl's bathroom? Or that even Haley, who would _never_ take this at PCH, lets people pick on her and ridicule her because her brother was murdered, like it's her fault or something? They're downright mean for no reason! We've never done anything to them!"

Jason frowned. "Maybe I can talk to the principal…"

"No! You can't talk to the principal because all he cares about is his precious _Madison_ students and they're precious _parents_ and their precious _money_! He would gladly expel a PCH student for something as simple as putting gum on the bottom of a table!"

"Emma." Sam had tears in her eyes. "We didn't know that you were going through all of this."

"Yeah, because you don't ask. All you care about is your stupid 'Miracle Baby' and making sure that you can start your brand new family with Selena and the baby and forget about the rest of us."

"Emma Joy Morgan!" Jason's voice boomed. "Don't you _dare_ speak that way to us."

"Why not? You don't care what you do to me. You let Gabe and Katie go to NYCS, but you forced Maddie and I to go to Madison. Obviously you don't care about my feelings, so why should I care about yours?"

"Emma, we're sorry." Sam cried.

"Save it. I don't need your pathetic apologies. No matter what, you're not going to pull me out of that horrible school, so why even waste your breath talking to me?" she went upstairs. As soon as she closed her bedroom door, Emma pulled out her cellphone.

"Hey Emmy."

"Hi Courtie. You know of any good parties tonight?"

**Chloe J**

"Well, well, if it isn't Chloe J Hunter." Brandon Carson, one of the boys from NYCS, came up to Chloe J with a smile. "What brings you here?"

"Brandon, it's a gas station. It's kind of self-explanatory."

He laughed "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Chloe J wasn't stupid. She knew he was trying to flirt with her, but she wasn't interested. She and Brendan were dysfunctional, but they had a good thing going and she wasn't going to ruin it with some NYCS kid.

"So, I'm having a party at my house tonight. It's gonna be huge. You gonna come?"

"I don't know."

"I invited your friends. Paige, Gabe, Nate, Hunter, your brother, your boyfriend."

"We're not dating." She quickly said. He looked hopeful. "I mean, we're on our way there, but nothing's official yet."

"Oh." He sighed. "Well you should come. It's gonna be fun."

"Is there going to be alcohol?"

He grinned. "Does a fish have gills?"

Chloe J frowned. "What does a fish have to do with anything?"

Brandon laughed. "Nothing. Just come, okay? I'll text you the address."

"Maybe." He started walking away. "Brandon!"

"Yeah?"

"Do you care if I bring a couple of people? Old friends from my other school?"

"Sure, bring whoever you want. This party is going to be huge!" he went to his car.

Chloe J grabbed her phone from her pocket. She made a text to The Dream Team, plus Brendan and Christian.

_Party tonight. You better be there. I'll send you the address. _

**Zack**

Zack knocked twice on the penthouse door before opening it up. He saw Sam and Jason hadn't heard him enter and they were in a pretty intense conversation on the couch.

He had known both of them for his entire life and knew it was pretty rare that they would fight to where Sam was crying the way she was now. He stepped forward.

"Is everything okay?" he asked, causing Sam to jump and Jason to turn around.

"It's fine, Zack." Jason answered. "What are you doing here?"

"Em didn't tell you? We're all going out tonight. Me, her, Maddie, Gabe, Connor, Court, Paige, Hunter, Britt, Chloe J, Nate, and even Mia. It's the first time we've all really hung out in a while."

"Good." Zack started up the stairs. "Hey Zack?"

He turned. "Yeah?"

"You've been looking out for Emma, right?"

"Of course I have."

"Okay." Jason nodded. Zack figured that was his permission to go upstairs. He smiled at Sam and then climbed the stairs, going to his best friend's bedroom.

He pushed the door open slowly and saw Emma was sitting at her vanity. Her dark hair was down and slightly curly around her shoulders. She was staring intently into her mirror, putting mascara on.

He had noticed that she wore a lot more makeup out lately than she used to. Back when they were all at PCH, she would fix her hair, throw on a little makeup, and put on an outfit she thought was cute and leave. Now, it almost seemed like she was trying too hard to be what the guys wanted her to be.

Ever since _everything_, Emma had changed a lot. At first, she seemed okay. After Zack was released from his holding cell, she had been happy. Then, they found out that Sam and Jason were forcing her to go to Madison. Zack had never really understood why they made her and Maddie go to one school, but let Gabe and Katie pick where they wanted to go. Naturally, Zack had decided to go to Madison since Emma and Courtney would be there. He knew how stuck up those kids could be, which was exactly why he never partied with them. They were all just sloppy punks.

But it seems like Madison had changed Emma, and not for the better. Now, her nights were filled with drinking and he wasn't even sure she remembered what happened half of the time. She was going down a dangerous path and he knew that he had to help her get off of it.

"Hey." Emma met his eyes in the mirror and smiled, but her dimples didn't poke out as brightly as they usually would, which meant she was upset.

"Hi, Princess." He assumed it had to do with why her parents were acting so weird, so he just left it alone. "Ready to go?"

"Uh-huh." Emma stood up, grabbing her phone and shoving it into her pocket. "It's crazy to think that the whole Dream Team will be there tonight."

"I know. It'll be just like old times."

"C'mon." Emma led him out of the room, flipping her light off as she went.

**Party**

"Ugh, this is disgusting already." Paige commented as she followed Nate Scorpio-Drake and Chloe J into Brandon Carson's house. She moved to the side as a girl spilled her drink all over, narrowly avoiding hitting her.

"It's better than a Madison party. Madison punks, sloppy drunks." Nate recited, making both girls smile. "Where is everyone?"

"Well if it was about four months ago, I would tell you Mia was probably at the keg, Gabe and Brittany would be playing beer pong, Maddie and Connor would be watching all the drunks, and Hunter, Emma, Courtney, and Zack would be walking around to socialize and drink, but now, I'm not really sure." Chloe J said.

"There's Britt." Nate pointed forwards.

Brittany was dancing with some guy they didn't recognize (and they weren't entirely sure if she did either). She had always been one of the crazier drinkers, and it seemed like Trevor's death bumped that up a notch.

"Hey Britty." Chloe J greeted.

"Hi guys!" she smiled at them. "This is, um, what's your name?"

"Tyson." The guy supplied.

"Yeah, sorry _Tyson_. Get lost." Nate pushed him back, stepping forward so he wouldn't be able to come towards Brittany again. "Who did you come with?"

"Hunter and Mia."

Paige frowned. "Mia didn't come with Gabe?"

"Nope. She said he was taking too long and she didn't want to wait for him, so she called us. I think Gabe and Maddie are coming together."

"What about Emma, Zack, and Courtney?"

"Who knows if they'll even show up." What Brittany said confused the three seniors, but they didn't push her on it.

"Hey everybody." Mia walked over to them, Hunter trailing behind her. He had his 'protective face' on, which meant that he had probably just scared some punk away from her.

"Look at this. Mama Mia's back on the partying scene." Nate joked. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay. Morning sickness sucks, but I've only gotten sick twice today, so that's a plus."

"You've only got like a month left of that, right?" Chloe J asked.

"Yep. I can't wait." Something behind Chloe J's head distracted the pregnant brunette. Everyone noticed and they turned in that direction.

Emma was standing on top of a table dancing around like a stripper. Courtney and Zack were nowhere to be seen, which was strange since the three of them usually stuck together.

"When she said it was bad, I didn't think it was _this_ bad." Mia commented under her breath before pushing through Chloe J and Nate to go over to her boyfriend's older sister. She looked up at her.

"Emma, what are you doing?"

"I'm having fun! Come up here!" she reached down, trying to grab Mia's arm.

"First of all, I'm pregnant. Second, I'm not going to dance around like some cheap whore. Where's Zack?"

"I dunno." Emma giggled.

"Didn't you come with him?"

"Nooo. I drove myself!" she slurred.

Mia closed her eyes and counted to three. "Emma, you need to get down. We don't know these people well enough to trust them."

"I'm just having fun, Mia! God! You used to have a lot of fun too before my brother knocked you up!"

Mia turned around to where Paige, Nate, Chloe J, Brittany, and Hunter were watching the exchange. She pointed to Hunter and motioned for him to come over. He did as she said immediately. When he got there, she pointed towards Emma, pointed towards her shoulder, and then towards where the others were. Hunter got the message and threw Emma over his shoulder and followed her towards their friends.

"There you are!" Zack said, coming over. "She took off as soon as we got here!"

"She said she drove herself." Mia told him in confusion.

"No, we rode together." he sighed. "I can't believe she's already starting this."

"Starting what?" Chloe J asked.

"Let's just say Em's been a little…wild…lately."

"She's not the only one." Nate motioned behind everyone. They turned to look at Courtney, who was making out with some random guy.

"Maybe if they act crazy and get it all out of their system, then they'll act normal." Paige suggested.

Zack laughed dryly. "They've been doing this four nights a week for the past two months. If anything, they're getting worse."

It hurt Paige a little bit to hear her ex-boyfriend say that. She knew that he had grown closer to Emma and Courtney (both of which she had been distant from), but she didn't know they hung out _that_ often.

"Hunter." Emma groaned. "Put me down! I wanna have fun!"

"You can have fun with your friends instead of these random guys who only want you for your body." Hunter told her as he set her down.

"I don't care what they want. I just wanna dance and drink." She started laughing. "Where's Courtie?"

Zack rubbed his temples. "Em, you need to chill. We've been here for less than twenty minutes and you're not pacing yourself. Remember when we talked about pace?"

She smiled. "Nope."

"Of course you don't."

Nate decided to make an attempt at helping. "You can't drink too much at one time or you'll get sick, Emma."

Emma glared at him, which surprised everyone. "Don't tell me what will happen. You don't know anything about me anymore." She looked back at Zack. "I'm going to find Courtney."

"She's over there." He pointed towards where the blonde was now drinking with a different guy.

"Kay." Emma walked away. They all watched her practically crash into Courtney and then the two of them laugh.

Chloe J frowned. "What just happened?"

Zack shook his head. "She's actually being pretty good compared to how she usually is."

"Hey guys." Maddie, Connor, and Gabe walked over to them together. Gabe was looking around in confusion.

"Where are Emma and Court?"

"Over there." Paige pointed to where Emma was now making out with some NYCS kid, and Courtney was taking shots with another one.

"Seriously? She's going to do this now?" Gabe sighed and went over to where his sister was. He pushed the kid she was kissing and they all watched in shock as Emma reached out, trying to slap Gabe. He grabbed her hand and pulled her back over. "Hunter, get Courtney."

"Let me go! I can do what I want!" Emma yelled, struggling to get free. Gabe was a lot stronger than her, so he easily held her in place. A couple seconds later, Hunter returned with Courtney.

"I want you both to listen to me right now. I don't care what you usually do. I know you go out and drink a lot, and you do pretty much whatever. But we're not in a tiny little bar where Zack can keep his eyes on you wherever you go. We are in a big house with a bunch of kids we barely know, and I doubt either of you know any of them. Stay with us. We all came out to have fun together, remember?"

"Why do you have to be such a buzz kill?" Courtney questioned.

"Stop." Mia interrupted. "I didn't drag my fat pregnant self to a party where I can't drink just to watch both of you act like idiots."

Emma pouted. "You were a lot more fun before you got pregnant, Mimi."

"Yeah, but I had to grow up, and now you do too. Just stop doing this."

"We will." Emma said, wobbling slightly as she tried to stand still. "Courtie, will you come to the bathroom with me?"

"Mmhmm." They all watched as the two girls linked hands and disappeared into the crowd.

Zack sighed, looking at Mia and Gabe. "Why couldn't you just leave it alone?"

Gabe frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"You don't think I haven't tried to talk them out of drinking every single night they do it? They act out a lot worse when they're told not to. Now I'm gonna be lucky if I can find them again." He walked away, going in the direction his best friends just had.

"Alright, I'm confused." Everyone looked at Chloe J. "What is going on?"

Mia, Gabe, Maddie, and Brittany all glanced at each other, debating on the best way to tell them. But they were quickly interrupted by the sudden sounds of a karaoke machine.

"Hey everybody! My name's Emma, and this is Courtie, and we're gonna sing you a song!"

"Oh God." Maddie groaned. "She really can't sing."

The two girls began to belt out the lyrics to 'Wannabe' by the Spice Girls, and it was terrible. No one in the crowd seemed to mind though, considering they were all too drunk to realize what was going on.

The rest of the Dream Team just stared, wondering when Emma and Courtney's new bad habit would finally end.

"Hey." Brendan Webber walked over to Chloe J, smiling at her and handing her a drink. "Why are you over here by yourself?"

"Because they," she gestured towards Emma and Courtney, who were dancing with some random guys, "are too drunk to even remember their own names."

Brendan knew that Chloe J missed Emma. The two girls didn't talk nearly as much as they used to, and their relationship had been strained after Chloe J considered getting an abortion with a baby that never really existed. As soon as they started talking, she had confessed this information to him, but he told her he didn't care as long as if she was ever in that situation again, she would come to him.

"Well where is everyone else? Didn't all of your friends show up?"

"Yeah. Zack, Hunter, and Nate are all practically obsessively watching Emma and Courtney, Gabe is with Mia since she can't drink or anything, Brittany and Maddie are playing beer pong, and I'm not sure what happened to Connor and Paige."

"I'm sorry this night didn't go like you expected."

Chloe J sighed. "I just want things to be like they used to be, and I can't make it happen and it's really bothering me."

The two best words to describe her would definitely be 'control freak', so Brendan knew that it was killing her to not be able to control everything that was going on in her life right now.

"It's all gonna be okay, Chloe J. There's nothing to worry about anymore."

"There's no _serial killer_ to worry about." She corrected. "But the aftermath of this whole thing is turning out to be a lot more serious than I expected."

Courtney giggled as she took another drink of whatever was in her cup, listening to the story of some guy whose name she couldn't remember. She looked around, wondering where Emma had gone, but she didn't see her anywhere.

"Get lost." She looked up right as Christian Hunter came over to her. "Hey Court."

"Hi Chris." She grinned. "Whatcha doin' here?"

"Chloe J asked me to come." He frowned slightly. "Where is everyone?"

"I dunno." She laughed.

"How much have you had to drink?" she shrugged. "Let's go find the others."

"No!" Courtney grabbed his hand, trying to stop him from walking away. Being much stronger, Christian could have easily walked anyway, but he chose to stay. "They're mad."

"Why?"

"Cause me and Em like to have fun and they don't."

"I'm sure that's not it."

"Uh-huh. Everyone else is boring! But drinking makes it better, Chris. Em says it makes her stop hurting, and I don't want her to hurt."

Christian's eyes softened. "Does it make it better for you too?"

"Sometimes. It helps me forget that Bella's gone forever. But I do it for Emma." She leaned into him. "Don't tell her I told."

"I won't." Christian promised. "Courtney, why don't you try and get her to find another way? She could talk to people about how she feels."

"She doesn't wanna talk. She just wants to drink and drink and drink. And if she needs someone to do that with, then I'll do it with her. She's my best friend and I love her."

"I know you do." Christian hugged her. "We can try and find another way to help her, okay?"

"Okay." Courtney whispered.

"Are we ready to go yet?" Mia asked. She, Gabe, Maddie, and Connor were sitting on a couch together, Mia's head resting on Gabe's shoulder.

"I am." Maddie agreed. "Where is everyone?"

"Brittany and Paige went to the bathroom. I think Hunter said he was going to go find Courtney, and Zack and Emma are over there." Gabe pointed in the direction of his older sister. "I'm not sure about Nate and Chloe J."

"Can we leave?" Right as he finished speaking, the two seniors walked over.

"Yeah, let's get the others." Gabe pulled Mia to her feet and they decided to get Zack and Emma.

Gabe was surprised that when they got over there, Emma had her arms around Zack's neck and she was leaning against him heavily. He was swaying slowly back and forth to the slow paced music.

"Ready?" Mia questioned.

"God, yes." Zack leaned down and lifted Emma up.

"No, I wanna stay!" she slurred, barely attempting to move around in his arms.

"Time to go, Princess. Just close your eyes."

When they got back over to the others, Hunter already had Courtney, and Britany and Paige returned from the bathroom.

"Christian said he was going home." Hunter told Chloe J. She just nodded and led the way out of the house.

Brandon Carson stepped in the way of the door right as she approached it. He gave her a big smile.

"It was good to see you, Chloe J. Your friends really know how to party."

"Yep. It practically runs through your veins at PCH."

He grinned. "See you at school Monday."

"Bye." She opened the door and they all followed behind him.

"Oooh, Chloe J, you like him, don't you?" Brittany demanded.

Chloe J rolled her eyes. "No. I'm trying to be a better person these days, so since I'm kind of talking to Brendan, I'm going to be loyal to that."

"That's amazing." She said in approval. "I'm proud of you."

"Gee, thanks, Britt."

The Dream Team split up into the cars they had arrived in and headed towards the Enchantment where they would be spending the night. They were all hoping that it wouldn't be awkward, considering they never really hung out anymore. Time had changed them, and it wasn't necessarily for the better.

_Overall thoughts?_

_Chloe J has changed a lot. What do you think about her now?_

_How did you feel about Emma's drinking and all that? _

_What about pregnant Mia? Is it as weird to read it as it is to write it? _

_Feelings on Emma, Courtney, and Zack getting closer? They're probably one of my favorite friendships, so I hope you guys like it too! _

_Maddie and Connor dating?_

_How do you feel about Haley and Wes? If more people like Haley, Wes, Addie, and Jamie, I'm going to try and add them into the story more. They won't be part of the Dream Team, but they'll interact more with people and have storylines. Christian, too. _

_Chloe J and Brendan? _

_What do you want more of? Less of? _

_Please let me know your thoughts! I'm still really hesitant on even posting this story since I don't get much response ever, so if you like it and you want me to keep updating, leave a review!_

_If you haven't done it already, make sure you sign up on the That's Life website! The link is on my profile. _


	2. I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning

**Chapter 2: I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning**

_Characters:_

_Rachel Janacek (Sam and Sonny)- 23_

_Emma Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 17_

_Gabe Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Maddie Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Katie Morgan (Sam and John; raised by Jason)- 14_

_Selena Morgan (Stella and Tyler; adopted by Sam and Jason)- 4_

_Morgan Corinthos (Carly and Sonny)- 29_

_Josslyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 22_

_Courtney Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 17_

_Connor Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 16_

_Jacelyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 14_

_Chloe J Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Christian Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Lukas Spencer (Maxie and Lucky)- 16_

_Leah Zacchara (Maxie and Johnny)- 15_

_Ava Zacchara (Maxie; adopted by Johnny)- 14_

_Daniel Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 17_

_Mia Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 16_

_Allie Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 14_

_Izzie Zacchara (Claudia)- 23_

_Clay Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 22_

_Zack Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 17_

_Hunter Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 16_

_Brittany Corinthos (Sonny and Brenda)- 16_

_Brenna Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 15_

_Lindsey Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 23_

_Nate Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 17_

_Noah Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 16_

_Spencer Cassadine (Nikolas and Courtney)- 28_

_Aiden Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 22_

_Paige Cassadine (Nikolas and Emily)- 17_

_Aubrey Crowell (Nadine and Nikolas)- 16_

_Nattie Cassadine (Nikolas and Brook Lynn)- 15_

_Colton Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 14_

_Wes Janacek (Kristina and Kiefer)- 16_

_Haley Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 16_

_Logan Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Livvie Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Molly Lansing Webber (Ric and Alexis)- 28_

_Addie Lansing (Ric and Elizabeth)- 16_

_Cameron Webber (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 29_

_Jake Spencer (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 24_

_Brendan Webber (Elizabeth)- 17_

_Stella Hunter (Elizabeth and Matt)- 16_

_Alec Barrett (Brenda and Aleksander)- 23_

_Ashlyn Falconeri (Lulu and Dante)- 15_

_Lila Rae Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 28_

_Jamie Quartermaine (Dillon and Georgie)- 17_

_Tanner Quartermaine (Dillon and Lulu)- 16_

_Julian Quartermaine (AJ)- 15_

_Grace Quartermaine (Skye)- 14_

_Tyler Drake (Lisa and Patrick)- 17_

_Ian Niles (Lisa)- 14_

_Carrie Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 15_

_Ryan Rosco (Faith)- 17_

_Dominic Rosco (Faith)- 14_

_Prue Webber (Molly and Cam)- 0_

_Henry Spencer (Lindsey and Jake)- 0_

_Sophia Janacek (Rachel and Kiefer)- 4_

_Kailey Franco (Franco)- 16_

_Reed Worth (Maggie)- 16_

_Rhiannon Deusa- 16_

_Lauren Grayson- 16_

_Brianna Edwards- 17_

_Deceased:_

_Bella Jacks (Jax and Brenda)- 15_

_Mason Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 15_

_Jazzie Corinthos (Sonny and Kate)- 14_

_Lola Zacchara (Claudia and Nikolas)- 14_

_Ben Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 15_

_Liam Drake (Elizabeth and Patrick)- 15_

_Matt Zacchara (Lulu and Johnny)- 17_

_Joey Falconeri (Dante and Brenda)- 17_

_Trevor Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 16_

_Taylor Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 14_

_Parker Ruiz (Manny)- 16_

_Corey Spinelli (Spinelli)- 15_

_Bailey Spencer (Lucky and Siobhan)- 15_

_Max Franco (Franco)- 15_

_Lily Mir (Leyla and Aleksander)- 15_

**The Dream Team**

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty!" Chloe J shouted as she walked into Emma's room at the Enchantment. Emma was still passed out, but Zack sat up, rubbing his eyes.

"What time is it?"

"Almost ten. Maddie and Paige are making breakfast."

"What are they making?"

"Cereal."

Zack rolled his eyes. "We'll be down in a minute."

Chloe J went to leave, but then she turned around. "Zack?"

"Hmmm?"

"How often does she do this?" she was obviously referring to Emma.

"This is all she and Courtney do Thursday through Sunday." He replied sadly.

Chloe J didn't respond, instead just leaving the two alone. She went back downstairs where everyone else was now awake.

Mia had been the first one awake that morning because of her morning sickness, and she had already showered and gotten dressed in some of the clothes Maddie had at the Enchantment. She wasn't showing yet, so it was still easy for her to wear her normal clothes, but she had to get a bigger size in pants or wear stretchy ones. She was wide awake and talking loudly, smiling more than anyone had seen her do in the past couple of months. Gabe was sitting next to her on the couch, watching her happily.

Nate was sitting in the recliner with it layed back. Brittany was on his lap, her eyes closed and her head resting on his chest because she was still half-asleep. Hunter and Courtney were lying on the floor. They were talking quietly, but Chloe J couldn't hear what they were saying. Paige and Maddie were still in the kitchen getting cereal for everyone. Connor was on the couch looking at something on his phone.

"Hurry up with that food!" Hunter shouted.

Paige walked in with bowls and milk, while Maddie had four cereal boxes in her arms.

"Can you be a little more patient?" Paige questioned, starting to pass out bowls. Maddie set the cereal on the table and everyone gathered around it.

Zack and Emma walked into the living room and sat down in the space left for them between Courtney and Maddie. Loud chatter filled the room as everyone poured their favorite cereal into a bowl.

"You okay?" Zack asked Courtney, looking over Emma so that he could see her.

"Headache." She complained, taking a drink from her water bottle. "I'll be fine."

Paige reached over and grabbed her purse, digging around in it until she found a bottle of Ibuprofen. She tossed it to Courtney.

"Thanks, P." she dumped a handful of them into her hand and everyone looked at her in alarm until Zack rolled his eyes and reached over Emma, grabbing back all but three and shoving them into the bottle, and then handing it to Emma.

Emma was staring blankly at the table in front of her as she slowly ate her cereal. She didn't even notice Zack gave her the bottle.

"Em." He said gently, trying not to attract everyone's attention even though he knew they were listening. "Take some medicine."

Emma finally seemed to pay attention again and she opened the bottle, taking three pills and swallowing them without water. Zack gave her a look and she took Courtney's water bottle and drank from it.

"So…last night was a little crazy." Brittany commented, taking a bite of Fruity Pebbles. "The two of you should never sing karaoke again."

Courtney's head shot up. "We sang?"

The others (besides Zack) were surprised that she didn't remember. Nate was the one to speak.

"Yeah, you and Emma sang Spice Girls."

Courtney groaned, letting her head fall onto the table. "That's so embarrassing."

Emma didn't speak, instead jumping up and running down the hallway. They all heard the slam of the bathroom door. Zack sighed and followed her.

"How did we even get here last night?" Courtney wondered.

"Zack carried Emma, I carried you." Hunter answered, shoveling his Frosted Flakes into his mouth like he had never eaten before.

"How does Zack usually get _both_ of you out?" Mia asked.

Courtney shrugged. "No clue. I guess he's just talented."

Everyone was quiet, eating their cereal in silence. No one was really sure what to say.

"Who is leaving with who?" Nate questioned.

"I guess we're all just leaving with whoever we came with." Maddie responded.

"I'm going with you guys though." Mia told Gabe and Maddie.

"Do you mind if I come too? I need to talk to your mom." Paige said.

"Of course not, P." Gabe smiled at his cousin.

"Then I guess I'm riding with Nate, Courtney and Connor came together, Britt and Hunter, and then Zack and Emma?" Chloe J asked. Everyone agreed.

"This is so awkward." Emma muttered after flushing the toilet. She sat against the wall across from it, leaning her head back.

"What is?" Zack asked. He was standing up and leaning against the sink.

"This whole morning. No one knows what to say to each other and it's super awkward."

Zack shrugged. "Everyone is making it awkward. We've known each other since we were little kids; I'm sure we could find something to talk about."

"I'm the one making it awkward, huh?"

"What do you mean?"

"They're not used to seeing me like _this_." She gestured between herself and the toilet. "Plus things between Paige and I were never really fixed. It's pretty obvious that Chloe J and Nate took her side."

"No one took sides. The two of you just need to spend time together to make things less awkward."

Emma sighed. "I just want to go home and sleep."

"I know you never listen to me when I say stuff like this, but I really think that you shouldn't go out tonight. You're running on empty, Emma. You need to rest."

She knew he was serious because he used her full name. "I won't. I think I'm too exhausted to anyway."

"Are you finished in here?" Emma nodded, so Zack reached his arm out, taking her hand and pulling her up. "I'll take you home."

Before he could walk out, Emma hugged him. He rested his chin on top of her head.

"Thank you for always staying by me."

"I wouldn't be anywhere else." Zack kissed her forehead and then they walked out of the room. Everyone was quiet.

"We're gonna go." Zack said. "Court, you going home with Connor?"

"Yeah."

"The rest of you are good?" the others nodded.

"Bye, Courtie." Emma leaned down and hugged Courtney.

"Paige is coming to your house." Courtney whispered in her ear. She felt Emma tense up and pull back.

"I'll call you later." She smiled at everyone else, though her dimples didn't show like they usually would. She followed Zack out of the Enchantment.

**Paige**

"Paigey!" 4 year old Selena Morgan ran over, enveloping her cousin in a hug.

"Hey, Sel." Paige lifted her up, kissing her cheek. "What are you doing?"

"Watching Tinkerbell with Daddy!" Paige looked over and saw Jason sitting on the couch focusing way more on his laptop than on the TV.

"Hey Uncle Jason, since when do you like fairies?"

Jason closed his laptop and smiled at her. "Hey Paige." He stood and hugged her. "What brings you here?"

"I was actually hoping to talk to Aunt Sam. Is she around?"

"She's in the kitchen attempting to cook. Maybe you should go help her."

"That might be better for whoever is eating her food." Paige agreed. She set Selena back on the couch and walked into the kitchen.

Sam's stomach looked way bigger than the last time she had seen her, and Paige couldn't help but smile. If anyone deserved a miracle baby, it was her aunt and uncle. After the way they lost their stillborn daughter, Zoe, they needed a new one, especially before Selena gets too old.

"Hi, Aunt Sam." She greeted.

The woman smiled at her. "Hey P. It's been a while." She hugged her. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, but it could be better."

"Is there any way I can help?"

"That's actually why I came here." She took a deep breath. "I need you to find Brook Lynn."

Sam frowned, putting down the knife she was holding. "I thought she was on tour."

"That's what she told us, but she wasn't supposed to be gone this long. I know it's a lot to ask, but Nattie really needs her. Everything has been so crazy since Lola…you know…and she just needs her mom."

"I'll do everything I can, but I can't make any promises, Paige."

"I'm just asking that you try." Paige hugged her again. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Sam kissed her cheek. "Are you gonna stay for lunch? Emma's upstairs in her room."

Paige looked away awkwardly. "Oh no, that's okay, I've got a lot to do today. I need to get to the launch."

"Are you sure?" Paige nodded. "Alright. You need to start coming around more. We all missed you."

"I've missed you too. Just call me if you find anything, okay?"

"I will." Sam promised. "I love you."

"Love you too." Paige walked out of the kitchen just as Katie walked in.

Sam watched her niece go. "That's weird. Why wouldn't she stay and talk to Emma?"

Katie rolled her eyes. "Mom, Paige and Emma don't talk anymore."

"What? Why?"

"I'll give you one guess. It starts with a 'Z'."

**Emma and Mia**

"Hello?" Emma answered the unknown number calling her phone, wondering who it could possibly be. That familiar fear raced through her body and the thought crossed her mind that the TMK could be back.

"Hey Emma, this is Brandon. You came to my party last night, remember?"

But it was impossible. Trevor was dead, and as hard as it was, she needed to get over it.

"Uh, yeah. How did you get my number?"

"You gave it to me when we were making out last night. You told me to call you if I ever wanted to see you again, and I _definitely_ want to see you again."

"Yeah, sorry, I don't really remember last night and that's not happening. Don't call me again." She hung up. She couldn't believe that she had made out with someone last night and couldn't remember it at all.

Gabe and Maddie had left a little while ago, so she knew the only person in the house who had been at the party last night was Mia. She walked into Maddie's room and saw it was empty. She turned and went down the hall to Gabe's room, where Mia was sitting on his bed with her laptop.

"Hey Mimi." She greeted hesitantly, not knowing if she was mad at her or not. Everything was really awkward that morning, and now she wasn't sure if she had done something to make everyone mad and just didn't remember it.

"Hi Emmy." Mia smiled at her, so she knew she was okay. She went over and sat on the other side of Gabe's bed, glancing at Mia's laptop.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking at the prices of baby stuff. It's ridiculous."

"You know my parents will buy it all, right?"

"I know they will, but I don't want them to. I'm going to get a job." Emma gave her an incredulous look. "What? I can get a job?"

"Mia, last year you wouldn't even work the ticket booth at the elementary school carnival because you said it required too much effort."

"Yeah, well things have changed. I don't have any other choice but to work. Whether I like it or not, I'm going to be a mom and it's time to grow up. I don't want to depend on your parents for everything."

"That's really responsible of you." Emma bit her lip, wondering how to say the next thing. "Can I ask you something?"

"Mmhmm."

"Did I make out with anyone at the party last night?"

Mia looked at her. "You don't remember?" Emma shook her head. "You were all over that guy who was throwing the party. You managed to get away from Zack long enough and when he found you, you were about to take your shirt off."

Emma buried her face in her hands. "God, I'm so embarrassed. He just called me."

"Em, I'm going to say something to you and I don't want you to get mad, okay?" Emma nodded, though she was weary. "You're going down the same exact path I was last year. After fighting with my parents and Mason dying, I just went crazy and I didn't think about anything. Self-destructing isn't a good feeling. I don't want you to go down that road."

"I'm not. And you seem fine now, so I know I'll be okay. It's just drinking."

Mia studied her, trying to figure out what she should say next. "Emma, I'm not fine. Even now, I deal with everything I did. I slept with random guys. You know as well as I do that this baby might not even be Gabe's, and I have to struggle with that guilt every single day of my life."

Emma looked at her. "I never even thought of that."

"You might not have, but everyone else has. Everyone at school would have judged me, and that's one of the main reasons I decided to do online school. I know that even though they're nice to me, your parents know that they are paying to support some whore and a kid that is most likely not even their grandchild."

"Mia, stop. You're not a whore, and my parents love you. And Gabe loves your baby, whether it's his or not."

"But that's the thing. He shouldn't have to worry about whether this baby is really his."

"He won't treat it any different."

"You can't possibly know that until he or she is born. Gabe's supportive right now, and I know that he'll still help me after I have the baby because he promised and Gabe never goes back on his word, but what happens if one day we break up and he has a kid with another woman? He will know for sure that baby is his, and he's going to love it a whole lot more than a baby who might not be his."

Emma wasn't sure what to say about all of that. "Then what are you going to do? Move back in with your mom? Now that she's divorced from Steve and Allie's with her, is that something you want to do?"

Mia sighed. "No, I made a promise to Gabe that I would stay here and I'm going to honor it. I just don't know how much longer he's going to want me around."

**Ashlyn**

Fifteen year old Ashlyn Falconeri knelt down in front of the grave of her former boyfriend. She reached out and traced the words _Corey Jason Spinelli_ with her index finger.

"Hey Corey." She said quietly, laying down the bouquet of flowers she had in her hand. "I just got back from the doctor's. I'm six months along now and the babies are good." She rested both hands on her stomach. "I don't know what I'm going to do. I don't want to be here anymore. I don't want to be a mom, or be around my parents, or do any of this. I wish you were still here. You would know exactly what to do."

She started to cry. "I'm so sorry, Corey. I wish I knew if these babies were yours. I wish we could plan out a life together and raise the twins. It's a boy and a girl, you know. We could name our son Corey Jr., and you could name our daughter. Please just come back."

While Ashlyn had her head down, she didn't see the two girls walking by the grave. Brittany and Brenna Corinthos stopped, wondering if they should go comfort her. But then, they heard what she said next.

"I think I know what I'll do. I will sell these babies for money, and then I'll run away. I'll run far, far away from here and never look back. Port Charles isn't where I belong."

Brittany and Brenna glanced at each other before walked away, heading towards their intended target of their sisters' (Lola and Jazzie) graves.

Ashlyn sat up, now knowing what she could possibly do. "I don't know if I could just give them away like it's nothing though. I don't know what to do, Corey. This is exactly why kids shouldn't get pregnant. We're too stupid to know what to do."

**Brittany, Haley, and Addie **

Brittany walked into her cousin Molly Lansing Webber's home, easily finding her two friends. Haley Lovett was sprawled out on the couch, while Addie Lansing came in with drinks.

"Hey, Britt." Addie greeted with a smile, handing her a glass of Mountain Dew.

"Thanks." Brittany pushed Haley's legs off of one of the cushions and sat down. "So, Bren and I went to go visit Jazzie and Lola today and I overheard something."

"Okay…" Haley motioned for her to continue.

"Ashlyn Falconeri was crying on Corey Spinelli's grave, saying she wants to sell her babies for money to run away. What should I do?"

"Leave it alone." Haley said immediately. "Everyone has been through enough."

Brittany wasn't sure if that's what she should do. Technically, Ashlyn is her niece (since Ashlyn's father is Dante Falconeri, who is Brittany's half-brother), so she felt obligated to say something to her family.

"Britt, I'm serious." Haley told her. "I'm sure she's just being all emotional. Leave it alone."

"I guess you're right."

"I always am."

Addie rolled her eyes. "So, Elizabeth called me. Again."

"How many times is that today?" Haley wondered.

"Four. She left me a message about coming to dinner tonight. I don't know what I should do."

"Don't go." Brittany said simply. "From what I hear, a Webber dinner isn't the most exciting event in the world."

Haley turned to her. "Who told you that?"

"Mia."

"Oh yeah, I always forget that those nut jobs are her cousins."

"Hey, we're not all nut jobs." Cameron Webber came into the room with a joking smile. He had Prue in his arms. "Addison, can you watch her for a little bit? I'm gonna run to the store real quick."

"Yeah, that's fine." Addie took her niece. "Hey Prudie."

"Mol should be home in about a half an hour. Thank you." Cameron looked at Haley and Brittany. "Girls, play nice. At least exclude me when you talk about my crazy mother."

"You're fine." Brittany agreed. "But only you, Jake, and Addie."

"What about Aiden?"

"He's dating Josslyn; he has to be a little crazy."

Cameron laughed. "I'll see you girls later." He grabbed his jacket and walked out.

"I think the only reason she wants to get close to me is because Stella's in a coma." Addie stated, getting back to the subject. "She just wants to replace her since she doesn't have anyone to control anymore."

"As sad as it is, you're probably right." Brittany agreed. "But at least Elizabeth stuck around in her kids' lives. My mother couldn't be bothered, and then after they died, she practically glorified Bella and Joey."

Brittany's half-siblings, Joey Falconeri and Bella Jacks, had been murdered by the Text Message Killer and ever since, her mom, Brenda Barrett, had been even crazier than usual.

Haley rolled her eyes. "I don't know how you do it, Britt. If I was you, I would just punch her. She's so rude to you."

"Trust me, if I hear her say 'you need to come with me to worship at their graves' one more time, I'm going to explode. I loved Bella, but I will go and visit her on my own time, not when I'm being forced to by my mother."

"Well, on another note, I'm thinking about being more involved with my half-brothers." Addie and Brittany looked at Haley in surprise. "Is that so shocking?"

"I just didn't expect you to want to get closer to your mother." Brittany answered.

"I don't know what I'm going to do about Lisa. I just know that I want to be a little more open to the possibility of spending time with Tyler and Ian. You both know how I feel about Ben now that he's gone, and I just don't want to risk the same thing happening with one of them."

"What about Logan and Livvie?"

"What about them?" Haley questioned as she bit into a chip.

"You can get closer to them too, you know. Or Wes."

Haley grinned. "Trust me; I'm getting closer to Wes." Addie and Brittany rolled their eyes. "Seriously though, is it weird?"

"Kinda." Brittany admitted. "But all of Port Charles is practically incest anyway, so what's it matter?"

"Good way to put it, Britt." Haley rolled her eyes. "He's not my brother, and we weren't raised together so my dad and Kristina being married doesn't even matter."

"You're gonna do whatever you want, Hales, so what we say doesn't really matter." Addie said. "If you like him, then go for it, I guess."

"You're right. I am gonna do what I want." Haley told them with a smirk.

The front door opened and closed and Molly walked in, still dressed in her lawyer clothes. She put her laptop case and purse down and came over to the girls, lifting Prue into her arms. She kissed her forehead.

"I love you so much, baby girl." She whispered, hugging her.

"You okay, Mol?" Brittany wondered.

"I just went through a huge custody battle, and in the end, the mother ended up losing her baby to the father. I can't imagine not having Prue with me."

"But Cam would never do that to you." Addie stated.

"He wouldn't dare." Molly agreed. "So what are you girls talking about?"

"Deadbeat mothers." Brittany answered. "Elizabeth is still practically stalking Addie, Haley's sort of considering a relationship with Lisa, and my mom is worshipping Bella and Joey's graves."

Molly turned to her younger sister. "I can have a talk with Elizabeth if you want me to."

"No, it's fine."

"What if she went crazy and tried to get custody of you?" Haley proposed. "What if she won since your dad has custody of you but you don't live with him, and she proved him unfit?"

Addie looked at Molly. "That can't happen, can it?"

"It's unlikely. You're almost 18 years old, and you've never had a relationship with Elizabeth. If it makes you feel better though, I can have Dad sign some papers to transfer custody over to me."

"It would." Addie agreed.

"I'll call him tomorrow." Molly sighed. "I'm gonna go change and then I'll start on dinner. You girls staying?"

"Of course." Haley scoffed.

"Sure." Brittany added.

"C'mon, Prue. Let's let the big girls talk." Molly carried her daughter out, leaving them alone again.

They all had a lot to think about, but they still weren't sure if they would make the right decision.

**Nate**

Nate stared down at his cellphone, practically bored out of his mind. Back when his mother was still alive, he knew what he would be doing right now. They would probably sit on the couch together and watch one of their favorite movies until his dad got home from work and then they would all go to bed. Now, his father, Dr. Patrick Drake, worked later shifts, his older sister Lindsey no longer lived at home, and his little brother, Noah, was already asleep. It was nights like this when he really missed his mom.

He clicked on his contacts in his phone, figuring that he might as well try and talk to someone. He dialed a number that had once been the most familiar.

"Hello?" Emma answered. He was glad that she didn't sound drunk like he had expected.

"Hey Em, what are you doing?"

"Math homework. Madison's schoolwork is a lot harder than PCH's."

"I bet. NYCS is a lot easier, but that's because they don't have enough money to buy the newer editions of books and make things harder."

"Still, it has to be better than sitting around with rich, stuck-up snobs all day."

"Definitely." Nate decided he had nothing to lose and cautiously asked his next question. "So, how are you feeling? Are you still getting sick?"

"I'm fine."

"I've never seen you drink like that before, Emma. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I said I'm fine!" she snapped.

"Zack told us you've been drinking a lot lately. Obviously you're not okay."

"Wow, I never thought you would be the one who would question me." She gave a dry laugh. "You know what? Just leave me alone. If you're gonna keep acting like this, then don't call me again." She hung up.

Nate just sat there in shock. Emma had never, _ever_ been so sensitive. Before everything had happened, you could ask her anything and she would answer truthfully without even batting an eyelash, no matter what the question was.

But, things had changed. Nate couldn't help but miss his best friend and the way she had been before.

**Gabe and Mia**

Mia closed her laptop, glad that she had finally managed to catch up on her schoolwork. She honestly didn't care about English and math when she was going to be a mother in seven months.

"Finished?" Gabe asked. She nodded and he took her laptop, setting it on the table next to his bed. He turned down the show he had been watching while she was finishing up her homework so they could talk. When he looked back at Mia, she was rubbing her temples. "You okay?"

"Mmhmm. Just a headache." She turned so that she could lie down and face him. He did the same thing, propping himself up with his right arm. Mia studied him. "Are _you_ okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"You look like something is wrong."

He knew he couldn't avoid the question. He reached out and brushed a piece of hair out of her eyes, and then rested his hand on her hip. "Emma told me about the conversation you guys had earlier." Mia looked down. "Hey, look at me."

She looked at him. "Gabe, I know you're not going to admit this, but there's no way you'll love my baby the same way you would love a baby that was yours."

"You're right." He said, surprising her. "I will love this baby _more_. No matter who the father is, you are its mother and I love you, Mia. You've shown so much strength through everything that has happened, and this baby represents that."

"But it might not be yours!" Mia looked like she was on the verge of tears. "I have no idea who this kid's dad is. What if it's Tanner, Gabe? And what if he tries to take the baby away?"

"That won't happen." Gabe reached out and pulled her towards him. He turned so that he was lying on the bed and Mia was on top of him. Her face was buried in his chest and he could tell that she was crying. "Mia, why didn't you tell me you were so scared of that?"

"Because it's my problem. Everything that has to do with this baby is my problem. You're only sixteen; you don't need to be stuck with a kid that isn't yours for the rest of your life."

"I'm not going to be stuck with it. I love this baby already, and I don't care if I'm the father or not. I'm always going to be here." He kissed her forehead. "I love you."

"I love you too." She raised her head and kissed him. When she pulled back, she rested their foreheads against each other.

"You won't have to worry about me being with another woman and loving my kids with her more than my kids with you because I'm always going to be with you. You're stuck with me, Mimi. I'm only going to have to love _our_ children, including the one you're pregnant with now." He rested his hand on her stomach.

"How do you always know exactly what to say?"

Gabe shrugged. "It's a gift." Mia rolled her eyes. "But I'm being serious. If you want to get a paternity test after the baby is born, that's fine, but I really don't think it's necessary. As far as I'm concerned, this little boy or girl is just as much mine as it is yours."

"Thank you." She leaned her head against his chest again. Gabe ran his fingers through her hair, feeling her breathing even out after a while.

His bedroom door opened and Sam walked in. "Is she asleep?"

"Yeah." Gabe answered, not moving from his position.

"She needs to go to Maddie's room."

"Why? She's already asleep."

"Gabe, you and Mia both know the conditions for her to live here."

"Mom, she's really upset and she hasn't been sleeping well the past couple of days. I know that she'll be able to sleep better in here."

"Is everything okay?"

"She's just freaking out about how the baby might not be mine. She's scared of how you and Dad will react once the baby is actually here, and she's scared I won't want to stick around."

"Your father and I realize that the baby might not biologically be yours, but you are stepping up and raising him or her no matter what. We don't judge Mia for her past; God knows I've made my fair share of mistakes."

"I know that, but she doesn't. She just needs some time to get used to the idea that everything will actually be okay."

Sam nodded. "She can stay in here, but just for tonight." She went over and kissed Gabe's forehead, and then the top of Mia's head. "I love you."

"Love you too." Gabe watched her leave. He reached over and turned off the light, hoping that Mia could actually get some sleep tonight.

**Brittany**

"Britt?" Brittany sat up slowly, squinting her eyes and looking around. She tried to focus on the face standing over her and then realized it was Hunter. "Are you going to school?"

"What?"

"You have to leave in fifteen minutes. Are you not going to school?"

Brittany jumped up, shoving the blankets off of her and running to the closet, not caring that she was only wearing underwear and a t-shirt. Hunter watched in amusement.

"Don't you know how to set an alarm?"

"Shut up, Hunter. This is not the time."

"Alright, alright." He held up his hands in surrender. "I'll get you some cereal."

"I don't have time. I still need to put on makeup."

"Okay." He walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Brittany quickly pulled on her Madison uniform- a white button up shirt with a collar, a navy blue cardigan with the Madison logo on the right side, a navy blue and green plaid skirt, knee high green socks, and navy blue dress shoes. She hated wearing uniforms, but it made getting ready in the morning really easy. She quickly ran a brush through her long, blonde hair and shoved a navy blue headband into it.

After applying foundation, mascara, eyeliner, and blush, Brittany figured that it was good enough. She brushed her teeth and ran downstairs. Hunter was sitting on the couch and tossed a Poptart at her.

"You need to eat something." He told her.

Brittany went over and hugged him, kissing his cheek quickly. "Thank you. Brenna! Are you ready to go?"

"I didn't think you would make it." Brenna was dressed identically to Brittany, except she didn't have a headband holding back her dark hair.

"Where's Zack?" Brittany wondered.

"He left already." Hunter answered from the couch. Since he goes to NYCS, he leaves fifteen minutes after his three siblings, who all go to Madison. "He was going to go pick up Emma."

Brittany smiled to herself. She loves Paige, she's one of her best friends, but Zack and Emma were meant to be and she was hoping that they were finally realizing that.

"Come on, Bren." The two Corinthos girls walked out of the house, getting into Brittany's car. She headed towards Madison.

"I wish Leah went to Madison." Brenna complained as she stared out the window.

"You honestly think Leah could handle those stuck up girls picking on her the way the rest of us do?" Brittany wondered. Her little sister's best friend had a bit of a temper problem, just like her older sister, Chloe J.

"No, but why is that such a bad thing? We should be standing up for ourselves."

"We can't or we'll get kicked out of school. NYCS barely has enough room for the kids they have now; they won't be able to take in the rest of the PCH kids too."

"I guess, but this still isn't right."

Brittany agreed with her silently. She pulled into the Madison parking lot near where she always parked, seeing that Connor's car was there already, and Maddie's was a couple of spots down. Zack's and Courtney's cars (and Emma's, but obviously Zack was taking her) were still missing.

"There's Carrie. See you after school." Brenna ran over to the other sophomore. Brenna and Carrie were the only sophomore girls from the Crew who had transferred to Madison, so they had naturally gotten closer.

Brittany walked into the school, paying more attention to her phone than to what was going on in front of her. It's not like any of the kids here liked her anyway, so why bother to acknowledge their existence? She headed in the direction of her locker.

"…and I bet you're a psycho too. It has to run in your genes." Brittany looked up from her phone and saw four girls crowding around someone, who was backed against the wall.

"Are you gonna flip out and murder us all just like your brother?" one of the girls taunted, making the others laugh.

Brittany knew immediately who it was. She shoved her phone into her pocket and walked over.

"Come on, Grace." Brittany said to Grace Quartermaine, who is a freshman. She looked relived to finally get away from the situation and eagerly followed the blonde.

"Wow, the poor murderer's sister is getting bullied! Oh no!"

Brittany stopped walking and turned around, coming to face to face with a taller, brunette girl. Her name was Brianna Edwards, and it was quickly established among the PCH kids that she was the most popular girl in school and one of the causes of the treatment they received.

But Brittany wasn't scared, at all. She stared straight into Brianna's eyes and lowered her voice. "You know _nothing_ about what happened at PCH. _Nothing_."

"I know you dated the guy."

Her entire body felt like it was engulfed in flames. Trevor Alcazar, the Text Message Killer, had been her boyfriend, but she liked to try and forget that.

"Come on, Grace. Let's go." Brittany grabbed Grace's arm and walked away, ignoring the laughs of Brianna and her friends.

"Thank you, Brittany." Grace said quietly.

"It's no problem. His mistakes are not your fault." Brittany reassured her. She could feel the anger building up inside of her with every step she took. She saw an empty patch of lockers and went over, kicking one as hard as she could. She slammed her fist into it, and then did it again. She kicked it over and over again, crying out with every hit.

Everyone in the hallway froze, watching Brittany attack the lockers. No one tried to stop her; they were all too scared of Sonny Corinthos' daughter. Grace ran off to find someone who she knew could stop Brittany.

"I…hate…you!" Brittany ground out between kicks. _Trevor_ was the reason they were all in this mess. _Trevor_ was the reason that four of her siblings had been murdered. It was _Trevor's_ fault they were all being bullied.

Connor came running down the hallway with Grace trailing behind him. He went over to his friend, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Brittany turned around, tears pouring down her face and her knuckles bloody from how many times she had hit the locker. She raised her fist as if she was going to hit him, but then she realized it was Connor and collapsed into his arms. He hugged her tightly, listening to her sob into his chest. That's when he realized a large crowd had gathered around them.

Connor reached down and lifted Brittany up, holding her in his arms and walking away from the group. "Grace, find Maddie. Tell her to go to my car."

"Okay." Grace went into the other direction.

Everyone stared as Connor exited the school, going to his car. He unlocked the door and sat in the backseat, holding Brittany on his lap.

"Shhh, it's okay. Stop crying, Britt. It's okay."

Less than two minutes later, Maddie came running over to the car. She got into the backseat on the other side and shut the door behind her.

"Brittany, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

Brittany's head rose from Connor's chest for the first time since she had seen him. "Nothing's okay, Mads."

"C'mere." Brittany leaned over to hug Maddie. It was kind of awkward since she was sitting on Connor's lap and had to stretch to reach Maddie, but none of the teens cared. Maddie ran a hand through Brittany's hair.

"What happened?" she asked once she had calmed down. The first bell rang and they knew they would be late to their first class, but right now, they didn't care.

"That girl Brianna and her friends were making fun of Grace, so I helped her and then they started talking about _him_."

All of the Dream Team knew that Brittany was extremely sensitive about Trevor, which is why they never talked about him. But they didn't know it was _this_ bad.

"You really busted up your hand." Maddie said, trying to change the subject for Brittany's sake.

"Lemme see." Connor insisted since Maddie is terrible with blood. Brittany held her hand out, wincing when Connor touched it. "It's not broken, but it's gonna hurt."

"I just wanna go home." Brittany rested her head on Connor's shoulder.

"We can't skip. They've probably already called our parents, and unless you wanna explain everything that just happened to your dad and Claudia, then we need to get back in there." Maddie reminded her.

"I've got some bandaging stuff in my glove compartment. Mads, can you get it?" Connor asked. She reached forward, grabbing the first aid kit out of Connor's glove compartment. He quickly bandaged Brittany's hand.

The three of them got out of the car. "Hold on." Maddie said. She went over, wiping under Brittany's eyes with her thumbs. She pulled some foundation out of her purse and added it to where there was still a little bit of mascara from Brittany crying. She looked much better afterwards. "You're good."

Brittany smiled at the couple. "Thank you, guys."

"We'd do anything for you." Maddie promised, grabbing Brittany's good hand. "Now let's go." She led her into the school, hoping that the rest of the day would be much better.

**Chloe J**

Chloe J's day had sucked. She had a pop quiz in French class, which she didn't study for, and forgot her math homework. She was so glad that the day was finally over.

After shoving her books into her locker, Chloe J started down the hallway. She saw a familiar brunette and picked up the pace so she could walk with her.

"Hey Paige." She greeted.

"Hi. Are you doing anything right now? I was thinking we could go to Kelly's."

"Sounds good." A brightly colored sign caught Chloe J's attention and she went over, reading it quickly. "P, look. There are cheerleading tryouts today."

"So late in the season?"

"It says that they were looking to replace a couple of people, and with all of the PCH kids coming in, they figured they would do another tryout. We should go and watch!"

"I don't know…"

"Come on, it'll be fun."

"I just can't imagine ever cheering for another team. But if you want to go, we can do Kelly's another day."

"Are you sure?" Paige nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Chloe J headed towards the gym where tryouts were being held. It was open tryouts, so people were able to come and watch. She didn't plan on actually trying out; she just wanted to see how NYCS's squad was.

Two girls stood at the front of the room, putting the girls trying out into their spots. One of them had long, dark hair and she was kind of tall. The other was average height with blonde hair. Chloe J assumed they were the captains.

"Alright everyone, I'm Rhiannon, and this is Lauren! We're going to start off by teaching you the routine!" the dark haired girl said.

Chloe J watched the routine, smiling at how simple it was. There were some good aspects, but a lot of the moves could be taken further and done better.

She turned her attention to the girls trying out. She was surprised when she saw that none of them were from PCH. Most of them looked like they had never cheered in their lives. Their arm movements were sloppy, and they weren't very flexible. Overall, it wasn't going well.

"We'll have our squad show you the routine so you can get an idea. Keep in mind that we are short, so it'll look better once we have more people." Lauren stated. Chloe J watched the NYCS cheer team show the girls trying out their routine, and she nearly laughed. It was so simple and girls were still messing up.

Lauren pulled Rhiannon to the side, standing near the bleachers that Chloe J was sitting on. "It's not working. Something's wrong with the girls in our squad, I just can't figure out what it is."

"Your girl on the left is too slow." They both turned to look at Chloe J. "The girl on the right who is her opposite is trying to stay in time with her, but it's just slowing her down, which is messing up the people behind them. The routine needs a lot of work to begin with, but your girl on the left is the one who is really screwing you over."

Rhiannon studied her. "Who are you?"

"My name's Chloe J Hunter."

"PCH transfer?" Chloe J nodded. "I remember you. When we played PCH in football, you were the one doing the routine in high heels."

"Yep, that would be me." Chloe J stood, walking down the bleachers. "You've got some good moves, but you could make things so much more complicated." She started to exit the gym.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Lauren jogged over to her.

"Home."

"You're not going to try out?" Rhiannon questioned.

"No, I just wanted to watch." She headed towards the door again.

"How about you show us what you've got first?" Lauren challenged.

Chloe J, never being one to back down, turned around with a smile. "I'm doing this the way I've been picturing it, not your cookie cutter routine."

The music started up and Chloe J went into the moves she had been thinking of the whole time she had been sitting there. Everyone stared in astonishment as she did a back handspring in her four inch heels. By the time she was finished, the gym broke out in applause, and some of the girls trying out even left.

"That was _amazing_." Rhiannon praised. "We need you on our team. You can be captain."

"What?" Chloe J asked.

"We need a captain who actually knows what they are talking about. Lauren and I are only captains because our old one got pregnant and had to quit the team, so we were the ones lined up to take over the squad next year when we're seniors."

"I don't know…" Chloe J couldn't imagine not cheering on a squad with Emma, Courtney, and Paige.

"Please, Chloe J. We'll do anything." Lauren practically begged. "We need your help."

Chloe J smiled. "Well how can I say no to that? But we're doing routines my way. They are going to be harder, and practice will probably be more intense than it has been. If you can't handle that, then leave now." Two of the girls who were already on the team left, and half of the girls trying out. "As for those of you trying out, I'll take you guys." Chloe J pointed to three of the girls. "The rest of you are dismissed. Thank you."

"That leaves us with fourteen girls." Rhiannon said. "Do you think we can do it?"

"I know we can."

**Emma and Courtney**

"I'm _starving_." Emma complained as Courtney took her time at her locker, grabbing her math book and a small black notebook and shoving it into her backpack.

"Will you calm down? I'm almost ready." Courtney responded. She shut her locker and they started down the hallway. They realized their siblings were coming from the other way.

"Em, are you going home?" Maddie questioned.

"No, we're going to the Metro Court. Why?"

"I was gonna have you tell Mom that I'm going to Britt's, but I'll just text her."

"Why do you need to go to Brittany's?"

"She had a massive freak out earlier." Connor answered. "Brianna Edwards and her friends were bullying Grace because of Trevor, and Brittany stepped in and something was said about how she used to date him. She started hitting and kicking this locker and busted up her hand, so Maddie and I are gonna go sit with her at her house and try and talk to her about what happened. Maybe we'll get her to open up a little bit about Trevor."

"Good luck." Emma replied. "I swear, next time I see that girl Brianna, I'm gonna punch her in the face. I'm so sick of her bullying everyone."

"What's going on over there?" the four of them turned and saw that the cheerleaders were gathering. Courtney looked at Emma. "Maybe we should talk to them about trying out. It might take our minds off of things." She was using Christian's advice and trying to find something else that would make Emma forget everything that happened.

"Okay. Mads, you wanna come with us? Maybe you and Britt could join too."

"Sure." Maddie, Emma, and Courtney went towards the cheerleaders with Connor trailing behind them. They saw that Zack and Jamie were talking nearby and Connor joined them, not interested in hearing about cheerleading.

Emma approached who she was guessing was the captain. Her back was to her, so she couldn't see her face. She tapped her on the shoulder.

Brianna Edwards turned around with a sneer. "I know you worthless PCH freaks don't think you're actually going to join _my_ cheerleading team."

Courtney stepped forward. "We heard about what happened with Brittany. She is like a little sister to us, and we're not going to take that."

"What are you going to do about it? Have your school serial killer come after me? Oh wait, he committed suicide. Looks like you're out of luck."

Brianna turned around and Courtney reached out, wrapping her hand into Brianna's hair and forcing her to turn back towards her. "You wanna say something like that again? Huh?"

Zack ran over, throwing himself between Courtney and Brianna. "Court, come on. It's not worth it."

"Listen to him, _Court_. _You're_ not worth it." Brianna said with a smile.

Before Zack could get to her, Emma had lunged forward, knocking Brianna to the ground. She wrapped her hands around Brianna's neck, lifting up her head and slamming it into the ground. Courtney was struggling in Zack's arms to get to her.

Brianna raised her fist and hit Emma in the back just as Jamie and Connor ran over. Jamie grabbed Brianna's hand and glared at her. Connor lifted Emma up around the waist, dragging her away from the other girl.

"Breathe, Em. _Breathe_." He ordered. Emma's breaths were coming in short gasps. Her face was red and her pupils were dilated from her anger. Her hair was wild around her and she struggled in Connor's grasp.

Jamie and Maddie went to Courtney, trying to calm her down since they knew Zack needed to be with Emma. He went over to her and lifted her chin with his hand, studying her face for any marks that Brianna left. He was satisfied to see that Brianna gotten to her face at all.

Zack turned around, looking at Brianna. "You got lucky this time. If I find out you're messing with my sister or Emma or anyone else from PCH again, no one will be holding them back." He noticed the way she was trembling slightly and smiled in satisfaction.

Zack, Emma, Courtney, Jamie, Maddie, and Connor turned away from the cheerleading squad and started to walk down the hallway. Zack put a hand on Emma's lower back and noticed that she winced.

"You okay?" he asked quietly, trying not to draw attention to them.

"She hit me."

"You did a lot more damage, Princess. Since when do you know how to tackle people?"

Emma couldn't help but laugh.

**Emma, Maddie, Gabe, and Mia**

Gabe walked into his bedroom after school, not surprised to see Mia watching a movie and eating Doritos in his bed. He sat next to her.

"Schoolwork?"

"Did it this morning." Mia answered, biting into another chip.

"There are going to be crumbs all over my blankets."

Mia shrugged. "Better your bed than mine."

The front door slammed and Gabe heard two sets of footsteps coming up the stairs. He and Mia shared a look of confusion before his door was thrown open. Emma stormed in, sitting at the end of his bed and grabbing the Doritos out of Mia's hand. Maddie was much calmer, closing the door behind her and then sitting next to Emma.

"I'm guessing today wasn't a good day?" Mia questioned, accepting the handful of chips Emma offered her.

"Definitely not. So at Madison, there's this girl named Brianna Edwards. She's like the entitled, queen bee type. She's the one who has been bullying a lot of the PCH kids. She was messing with Grace this morning, and Brittany stepped in. You both know how she is about Trevor," Gabe and Mia nodded, "and something was said about him and she flipped out. She started beating this locker, and I mean _beating_ it. I didn't see her actually do it, but I walked by it and its dented and everything. She busted her hand and Connor wrapped it." Maddie told.

"So then Maddie and Connor tell Courtney and me this after school. Turns out Brianna is the head cheerleader and she tells us that we're too worthless to be on the team. Courtney kind of argued with her, and then she was about to hit her, but Zack stopped her." Emma picked up.

"And then Emma comes out of nowhere and tackles her to the ground, and I literally mean she _tackled_ her. She was choking her and slammed her head into the ground and Brianna got a hit in before Connor could pick her up. Then Zack told Brianna that she won't be so lucky next time." Maddie finished.

Gabe looked at his older sister. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I've had worse." Emma said grimly. They all realized she was right; Emma had been beaten last year by the TMK _and_ by Joey, so this was nothing new for her.

"Let me see."

Emma stood and turned around, lifting her shirt. There was a bruise on her back that was a mixture of blue and purple.

Mia jumped up and dropped her Doritos in the process, smashing them into Gabe's blanket as she stood. He groaned.

"This is ridiculous. Who knows where this Brianna girl lives? I'm going to pay her a little visit."

"Mia, you're pregnant."

"So? I'm not gonna stand for some stuck up rich kid messing with PCH or the Crew, and you guys shouldn't either."

"EMMA!" they heard Sam yell from downstairs. Emma rolled her eyes and went downstairs.

Maddie looked at Mia. "Trust me. Emma's not standing for it either."

**Chloe J**

Chloe J started the music over for what felt like the millionth time. She was really struggling to come up with a routine the NYCS team could actually do.

Her bedroom door opened and Maxie walked in. She sat at the end of Chloe J's bed. "What are you doing?"

"Coming up with a new routine."

"For…"

"The NYCS cheer team. I'm the captain."

"When did that happen?"

"Today."

"When did you even try out?"

"Today."

"Wow. They must be really desperate."

"They are. Mom, the team sucks. Like it's ridiculous. I was doing more complicated stuff in elementary school than they are doing now. I don't want to make it too hard for them though. It's hard to balance."

"You know, just because they're not on the team doesn't mean your friends can't help you. You could give them a call."

Chloe J smiled. "You're right! That's a perfect idea."

"I'm _always_ right." Maxie replied cockily. "I'll see you in the morning, okay? Turn the music down."

"Whatever." Chloe J accepted the hug Maxie gave her. As soon as she was out of the room, the blonde dialed a number. "Hey, it's me. I need a favor."

_Overall thoughts?_

_How do you feel about the Dream Team interaction? Who are your favorite/least favorite Dream Team members?_

_Where do you think Brook Lynn has been all of this time?_

_What do you think will happen to Ashlyn's babies? Were you surprised that she's having twins? _

_What should Addie, Brittany, and Haley do about their mothers? _

_What do you think happened between Emma and Nate that made her so upset with him?_

_Do you think Gabe will actually honor his promise to Mia and be there for her once the baby is born? _

_What do you think will happen with Brittany? How will she cope with Trevor's death? _

_Chloe J is now the cheer captain for NYCS. Will this be a good thing or bad thing?_

_Thoughts on Brianna Edwards and her feud with the PCH kids, especially Emma, Courtney, and Brittany? _

_Who do you think Chloe J called?_

_If you have any ideas for storylines for anyone, let me know! If you want to see more of certain characters, tell me and I'll try to give them some kind of storyline! I need ideas because I only have this written up to a certain point!_

_If you haven't done it already, make sure you sign up on the That's Life website! The link is on my profile. _


	3. The Games That Play Us

**Chapter 3: The Games That Play Us**

_Characters:_

_Rachel Janacek (Sam and Sonny)- 23_

_Emma Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 17_

_Gabe Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Maddie Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Katie Morgan (Sam and John; raised by Jason)- 14_

_Selena Morgan (Stella and Tyler; adopted by Sam and Jason)- 4_

_Morgan Corinthos (Carly and Sonny)- 29_

_Josslyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 22_

_Courtney Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 17_

_Connor Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 16_

_Jacelyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 14_

_Chloe J Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Christian Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Lukas Spencer (Maxie and Lucky)- 16_

_Leah Zacchara (Maxie and Johnny)- 15_

_Ava Zacchara (Maxie; adopted by Johnny)- 14_

_Daniel Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 17_

_Mia Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 16_

_Allie Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 14_

_Izzie Zacchara (Claudia)- 23_

_Clay Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 22_

_Zack Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 17_

_Hunter Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 16_

_Brittany Corinthos (Sonny and Brenda)- 16_

_Brenna Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 15_

_Lindsey Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 23_

_Nate Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 17_

_Noah Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 16_

_Spencer Cassadine (Nikolas and Courtney)- 28_

_Aiden Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 22_

_Paige Cassadine (Nikolas and Emily)- 17_

_Aubrey Crowell (Nadine and Nikolas)- 16_

_Nattie Cassadine (Nikolas and Brook Lynn)- 15_

_Colton Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 14_

_Wes Janacek (Kristina and Kiefer)- 16_

_Haley Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 16_

_Logan Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Livvie Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Molly Lansing Webber (Ric and Alexis)- 28_

_Addie Lansing (Ric and Elizabeth)- 16_

_Cameron Webber (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 29_

_Jake Spencer (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 24_

_Brendan Webber (Elizabeth)- 17_

_Stella Hunter (Elizabeth and Matt)- 16_

_Alec Barrett (Brenda and Aleksander)- 23_

_Ashlyn Falconeri (Lulu and Dante)- 15_

_Lila Rae Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 28_

_Jamie Quartermaine (Dillon and Georgie)- 17_

_Tanner Quartermaine (Dillon and Lulu)- 16_

_Julian Quartermaine (AJ)- 15_

_Grace Quartermaine (Skye)- 14_

_Tyler Drake (Lisa and Patrick)- 17_

_Ian Niles (Lisa)- 14_

_Carrie Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 15_

_Ryan Rosco (Faith)- 17_

_Dominic Rosco (Faith)- 14_

_Prue Webber (Molly and Cam)- 0_

_Henry Spencer (Lindsey and Jake)- 0_

_Sophia Janacek (Rachel and Kiefer)- 4_

_Kailey Franco (Franco)- 16_

_Reed Worth (Maggie)- 16_

_Rhiannon Deusa- 16_

_Lauren Grayson- 16_

_Brianna Edwards- 17_

_Deceased:_

_Bella Jacks (Jax and Brenda)- 15_

_Mason Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 15_

_Jazzie Corinthos (Sonny and Kate)- 14_

_Lola Zacchara (Claudia and Nikolas)- 14_

_Ben Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 15_

_Liam Drake (Elizabeth and Patrick)- 15_

_Matt Zacchara (Lulu and Johnny)- 17_

_Joey Falconeri (Dante and Brenda)- 17_

_Trevor Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 16_

_Taylor Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 14_

_Parker Ruiz (Manny)- 16_

_Corey Spinelli (Spinelli)- 15_

_Bailey Spencer (Lucky and Siobhan)- 15_

_Max Franco (Franco)- 15_

_Lily Mir (Leyla and Aleksander)- 15_

**Chapter 3: The Games That Play Us**

**Emma**

Emma walked out of her third class, going immediately to her locker, ignoring all of the whispers from the people around her. They all know who she is; _everyone_ knows who Jason Morgan's daughter is. But instead of her father's name protecting her like it usually did, it just made her more of a target.

"Hi, Emma." She looked up and saw Allie Webber, Mia's younger sister.

"Hey, Allie." She smiled at the younger girl. Allie and Mia were the perfect example of sisters who were polar opposites. While Mia had always been wild and loud, Allie was quiet and tried to blend in with the crowd. It was strange to see such a difference.

"How has Mia been?"

"You haven't talked to her?" Emma thought that Mia talked to her sister a couple of times a week, at least, so she was surprised.

"I have, but we both know she won't tell me if she's not feeling good."

Emma shoved her books into her locker and then shut the door, preparing to go to lunch. The two girls started to walk down the hall together.

"She's been doing good." Emma said. "Her morning sickness isn't as bad lately. She freaked out a little bit a couple of days ago about the possibility that Gabe isn't the baby's father, but don't tell her I told you that."

"Is she okay now?" Allie asked in alarm.

"Yeah, Gabe has talked to her and promised her that no matter what, he's going to be there."

Allie bit her lip. "I know he's your brother and all, but do you think he's telling the truth?"

"Allie, when Gabe makes a promise, he doesn't break it. Ever. He's going to be there for Mia and that baby for as long as he's alive."

"That's good." Allie smiled.

They both looked up at the same time as Haley walked by one of the Madison boys and he said some comment to her. She rolled her eyes and just kept walking.

"It's terrible what happened to Grace." Allie commented.

Emma turned to her. Grace is her cousin, so she feels that responsibility for her, and then there's the fact that she was the student president of PCH, so she feels like it's her duty to protect the PCH kids. "What happened to Grace?"

"You didn't hear? She transferred out of Madison."

"What?"

"The kids have been bullying her a lot because of who her brother was. She couldn't handle it anymore, I guess. She's at NYCS now."

"That's terrible." Emma shook her head. She didn't think that any of the PCH kids should give into the torment they are receiving, but Grace transferring was definitely for the better. She had been getting the bullying the worst since Trevor was her brother, and Emma knew she would be treated a lot better at NYCS where the kids were much less judgmental.

"I better get to lunch. Thanks for telling me the truth about Mia."

"I'm sure if you came to see her that would be okay." Emma said to the younger girl. In the entire time Mia had been living with the Morgans, Allie never came to see her at the penthouse.

"I don't know how my mom would feel about that."

"I thought it was your dad that had the problem, not Olivia. She always seemed cool about everything."

"She is, but I don't want to rock the boat."

"Makes sense. I'll see you later, Allie."

"Bye." She walked away.

Emma continued down the hallway, stopping when she saw a familiar blonde. She hadn't seen Brittany at all yesterday, so she still hadn't talked to her about the situation she had encountered with Brianna and the locker.

"Hey Britt."

Brittany gave her a small smile. "Hi, Emmy." She shut her locker. "Listen, I know you're gonna want to talk about yesterday, but I would rather forget."

"That's fine. I understand that better than anyone."

"But thank you for standing up for me to Brianna. Zack told me that you tackled her."

"Oh my God, I don't know why everyone keeps saying that. I didn't _tackle_ her…I just kinda jumped and she fell down."

Brittany laughed. "Yeah, I'm sure that's what happened."

"Everyone watch out! It's Whacko!" one of the preppy Madison boys yelled, pressing himself against the wall when Brittany walked by. She rolled her eyes and ignored it.

Emma looked over her shoulder at him with a dirty look, and then turned back to Brittany. "What's that about?"

"Oh, all the Madison snobs are calling me 'Whacko' because of what happened yesterday."

Emma thought of what Allie told her about Grace. She really hoped Brittany didn't end up having to switch schools because of the bullying.

"It'll get better, Britt. It's not like it can get any worse."

"After what we all just went through, I think it definitely can." They entered the cafeteria, going to the section that the PCH kids sat at. The members of the Crew- Emma, Courtney, Maddie, Brittany, Zack, Connor, Brenna, Tyler Drake, Jamie Quartermaine, Addie Lansing, Haley Lovett, Livvie Davis, Logan Davis, Tanner Quartermaine, Reed Worth, Carrie Corinthos, Julian Quartermaine, and Allie Webber- had a table to themselves.

Emma saw that Zack was already seated and sat next to him. He had two plates in front of him and slid one over to her.

"Thank you." She said with a smile.

Brittany sat across from them and next to Courtney, who was just drinking iced tea. She leaned her head on the older blonde's shoulder.

"Good afternoon, everyone!" Jamie greeted, sitting towards the middle of the table. Addie and Haley were right behind him and they sat down.

"You okay, Britt?" Haley questioned.

"Yeah, just tired." Emma, Zack, and Courtney knew that was a lie, and Emma suspected that Haley did too, but she didn't press her on it.

"Hey." Maddie dropped her tray on Courtney's other side. Brittany reached across Courtney to grab a handful of fries from Maddie's plate.

"Wow, and look what I did for you." Connor sat on Zack's other side and reached over to hand Brittany a bag of potato chips.

"Connie, you don't even know how much I love you for this." Brittany opened it up and started to chew.

The table started to fill up until everyone was sitting down, talking amongst themselves, and some of them were even laughing. But, of course, their moment had to be ruined.

"Whacko!" some boy taunted as he walked by.

But it wasn't Zack, or Connor, or Emma, or Courtney, or even Maddie who defended their friend. It was Tyler Drake, Courtney's ex-boyfriend and Nate's and Haley's half-brother. Before anyone could say something, he stood and punched the boy right in the face, knocking him to the ground easily.

"You okay, Brittany?" Tyler asked, ignoring the shocked looks from everyone around them.

"Yeah. Thanks, Tyler." She was honestly surprised that he, of all people, would defend her.

As Tyler walked back to his seat, he caught Courtney's eye. She gave him a small smile, which he returned. The two of them hadn't had an easy break up; Tyler said he wanted to get in bed with Emma, and then Courtney found out he had cheated on her during their four year relationship. But that smile made him think that maybe there was a chance they could at least be friends.

"You need to go to the principal's office immediately." One of the teachers said, looking at Tyler.

"Why? It's not like he just jumped up and punched the kid for no reason. Your precious little Madison student should go too for what he said." Haley argued in her half-brother's defense.

"Unlike your wild school, we actually have rules here, and we don't condone violence." The man told them.

"Oh, but you support bullying?" Emma wondered. The other PCH kids quieted down, knowing when to let her talk.

"Of course not."

"That's funny, because every single person at this table has been bullied since coming to Madison, but do you see anyone defending us? No. No one cares because we had to come here after a serial killer terrorized our school." Emma stood up on her seat, not caring that everyone was now staring at her. She got onto the table.

"Princess, what are you doing?" Zack whispered.

She ignored him. "Do you all think we actually _want_ to be in this school? We hate being here just as much as you hate us being here. Our motto at PCH when dealing with all of you is 'Madison punks, sloppy drunks' because not one of you can throw a good party. No one cares about how much money your mommy and daddy make because you're most likely going to end up pregnant, overdosed on drugs, or failing out of college in a couple of years since all you know how to do is let everyone else handle all of your problems. If we could go back to PCH, we would gladly do it without a second thought, but we can't and you're gonna have to deal with that. I am sick and tired of having to deal with everyone I care about being bullied because one of their siblings or cousins or friends was killed. Do you think it's our fault that some psycho attacked a bunch of teenagers? It's not, and it's not fair for us to be constantly judged because of it."

"Why don't you just sit down?" Brianna asked, going to stand at the end of Emma's table. "No one cares what you have to say."

Emma got off the table. "Careful, Em." Zack warned as she approached the taller girl.

"And I don't care what _you_ have to say, and yet you keep talking." Emma cocked her head to the side. "Pretty hypocritical, don't you think?"

"Look, no one wants to deal with you being…"

"No, _you_ look. I don't care that you're the little popular whore who spends all of daddy's money on alcohol and pills to get over the fact that your parents couldn't care less about you. I don't want to deal with your rich girl problems, or your terrible attitude. Regardless of what you do or say, we're staying here until PCH is rebuilt, so you might as well get over it, especially since when you get mad, your face turns red and that is _not_ a good color for you."

"EVERYONE GET IN YOUR SEATS!" the teacher screamed.

"This isn't over, Morgan." Brianna growled.

Emma gave her a full-on dimpled smile. "Wouldn't dream of it, Edwards."

As she sat back down, the PCH kids exchanged a look. Maybe Emma was finally getting back her old fire.

**Paige**

Paige stared at the board from where she was sitting in her history class. At PCH, she had been in all AP and Honors classes, but NYCS couldn't afford to offer those, so she was in basic ones. Everything they were learning was way too easy.

Though Paige's father, Nikolas Cassadine, could easily afford Madison, he had decided to send his children to NYCS because it was much closer to Wyndemere. At first, she had been furious, but over time, she grew to like the school. Here, she could just be Paige Cassadine, the smart, pretty girl. She didn't have to be a cheerleader, or popular, or one of Emma's best friends. She could just be herself.

She wasn't sure when exactly she had realized how different she and Emma were. For the first seventeen years of their lives, they had been just alike to everyone who saw them, with the exception that Emma was more talkative, and Paige thought things through before doing them. But recently, that divide grew much larger.

It must have started around the time she and Zack broke up. Paige wasn't stupid; she knew that there was an attraction between the two best friends, but she also knew that they wouldn't ever cheat. Even though there was a bit of tension between her and Emma, she still believed that Emma would never do anything purposely to hurt her.

Paige's feelings for Zack were a little more complicated though. She was still in love with him; they had been together for four years, after all. But she wasn't sure if she loved him the same way that she had before. If he came up to her right that minute and asked her to go out with him, she wasn't sure what she would say.

The bell rang, signaling the end of the day. Paige gathered her books and shoved them into her backpack before walking into the hallway.

She saw Chloe J charging down the hallway towards the gym, her blonde hair bouncing as she walked in determination. One of the saddest things the divide between schools had caused was the distance in Emma and Chloe J's friendship. The two girls didn't speak nearly as much as they had before, and Emma spent more time with Courtney, which also meant Paige was drifting away from her own best friend. She wasn't even sure if that's what she could call Courtney anymore, considering it had been so long since they _really_ had a conversation.

All Paige knew was that things had changed among the seniors in the Dream Team, and she hoped that everything could be normal soon.

**NYCS Cheerleaders**

"Alright everyone, I've enlisted some help, so I really hope that this will work!" Chloe J announced to the NYCS cheerleaders as she walked into the gym. They were all seated on the bleachers, Lauren and Rhiannon in the front so that they could speak if Chloe J needed them to. "She should be here any minute, so until then, you guys can talk or whatever."

"So I tried talking to Gabe again." Lauren told Rhiannon.

Chloe J turned to her. "Gabe Morgan?"

"Yeah. He's from PCH, do you know him?"

"He's my best friend's younger brother."

"He's so cute." Lauren sighed. "He won't even look at me though! I don't understand why he isn't interested in any of the NYCS girls, or even the girls that transferred from PCH!"

Before Chloe J could respond, the gym doors opened up. Everyone looked over, seeing a beautiful brunette walk into the room. She immediately commanded the attention of the others as they studied her.

"Sorry I'm late, Gabe was being all annoying and overprotective again. No one ever realizes that I'm pregnant, not disabled." Mia said, rolling her eyes. She put down the radio Chloe J had asked her to bring.

"Everyone, this is Mia Webber. Mia, this is everyone. Yes she is pregnant, no you can't ask any questions. She has been a cheerleader since she was five years old and she's here to help us with that, not be judged for having a baby." She leaned closer to the brunette. "I don't really know any of the other girls' names, but this is Lauren and Rhiannon. They're the old captains."

"Nice to meet you." Mia smiled at them.

"When you said Gabe before, were you talking about Gabe Morgan?" Rhiannon wondered.

"Uh-huh."

"Is he gay?"

Chloe J and Mia turned to each other and burst out laughing. They could both feel tears welling up in their eyes; in all of their lives, no one had _ever_ asked if Gabe was gay.

"Are you serious?" Mia said, still trying to stop laughing.

"Yeah, he won't even _look_ at any of us! He has to be gay, right?"

Mia rested her hand on her stomach and looked at the girls. "He's definitely not gay."

The girls' mouths all hung open in shock. They all knew Gabe and would have never guessed that he had a baby on the way.

Mia couldn't help but laugh again. "I'm guessing that Gabe hasn't mentioned that he's going to be a father?"

"No, he doesn't talk to anyone but the people from PCH." Lauren responded. "I guess I know now why. He's got a beautiful girlfriend and a baby coming."

Mia smiled. "It's good to know that he's so dedicated."

Chloe J wrapped an arm around Mia's shoulder. "What do you say, Mimi? Ready to show these girls what a PCH cheer practice is like?"

Mia grinned. "Yep!"

The NYCS girls could tell they would _definitely_ be sore after today.

**Josslyn and Lindsey**

"Ugh, I'm so tired." 22 year old Josslyn Jacks complained as she walked into her best friend's apartment. She collapsed on the couch.

23 year old Lindsey Drake Spencer (formerly Scorpio-Drake, until her marriage to her longtime boyfriend Jake Spencer) laughed. "Rough day at the hotel?"

"You wouldn't believe it. One of the pipes broke in the basement, so I had to get someone to fix that. There were two parties scheduled in the dining area, so I had to find a place to put one of them to avoid all of the confusion. I swear that the Metro Court has the most incompetent staff." She sat up. "What about you?"

"I didn't do much really. Took Henry to daycare, went to school, and then picked Henry up."

"Ugh, married life. So easy." Josslyn groaned.

"You could experience the wonderfulness if you would just marry my brother." 24 year old Jake Spencer reminded her as he sat down in the recliner, looking at his wife's best friend/his cousin. He had his and Lindsey's (adoptive) son, four month old Henry Thomas Spencer, in his arms.

Josslyn sighed. "Jake, don't."

"Why not? You love Aiden, Aiden loves you. Why can't the two of you just get married?"

"First of all, I'm only 22 years old. I've got so much more to do with my life before I start settling down."

"Well it's not like you have to have kids immediately after you get married, Joss." Lindsey reminded her.

"I know that, but you both know I have a tendency to screw up. Every mistake I make is going to be multiplied by, like, a thousand if I'm married. I don't want to do that to Aiden."

"I think he knows how to handle you by now. It's been three years."

"Three years isn't that long."

"Um, let's think of everything that has happened in the past three years. My little brother and your little sister were killed by a deranged teenager. Jake and Aiden's little sister is in a coma in a hospital bed. Jake and I got married and had a baby. You and Aiden have gotten much more serious. Alec "The International Player" Barrett has a girlfriend! A girlfriend with a kid, no less. And that's all just in the past _four months_. A lot can happen in three years." Lindsey told her.

"If Aiden really wanted to marry me, then he would ask. We haven't even really talked about it." Josslyn sighed. "Can we talk about something else?"

Lindsey knew that was all she was getting from her best friend, so she agreed. "I still can't believe Izzie is pregnant."

23 year old Isabel "Izzie" Zacchara is one of Josslyn and Lindsey's oldest friends, mainly because of the fact that she is the only one who could handle being around the two of them. It's a well-known fact in Port Charles that when Josslyn and Lindsey are together, anything can happen.

"I know, it's crazy. Her and Spencer have only been together for, what, three months? It's all happening really fast."

"Well you know how Izzie is. She doesn't really tip-toe into things; she just sort of dives headfirst."

"Have you guys ever considered that maybe the baby isn't Spencer's?" Lindsey and Josslyn looked at Jake, who was making faces at Henry. "What if it's Kiefer's and Spencer is just stepping up?"

"Izzie told us that there's definitely a chance that the baby could be Spencer's." Josslyn stated. "Whatever. As long as she's happy, we should just be happy for her."

"Spencer's a good guy. He won't take advantage of her." Lindsey said.

"And I agree with that. But I'm just saying, Spencer may be acting like he's the father. It's not like it really matters though. The man who raises the child is the father, not the one who helps to make it."

Lindsey smiled. "Just like with someone we know." She still couldn't believe the love she felt for Henry, even though he hadn't come from her body.

"And on that note, I better go." Josslyn stood up, grabbing her purse.

"You just got here!"

"Yeah, I just figured I would stop by and talk to you for a couple of minutes. I've got to get home and shower and go to bed. I'm exhausted."

"Where is 'home' tonight?"

"My parents' house." Josslyn lived back and forth between Carly and Jax's house, and the apartment that Aiden and Alec (and formerly Jake, before he and Lindsey moved out together) shared. "Aiden and I both have meetings early in the morning and I know that I'm not going to get anything prepared if I spend the night with him."

"That's smart of you, Joss."

"Everything I do is smart." Josslyn plucked Henry out of Jake's arms. "Bye, Henry. I'll see you later, okay?" she pressed a kiss to his chubby cheek. She kissed Lindsey's cheek on her way towards the door. "I'll call you tomorrow, Linnie."

"M'kay. Be careful."

"Always." Josslyn waved and then walked out.

**The Morgans and Mia**

"Gabe, can you pass the green beans, please?" Maddie asked her brother from where she was sitting at the dining room table. On her left was Jason (who was at the end of the table), with Emma on her right, then Selena, then Sam (at the other end), then Katie, then Mia, then Gabe, and back to Jason.

Gabe reached over and grabbed the green beans and then handed them to Maddie across the table. Everyone remained silent, just like they had been since dinner started.

"Mommy?"

"Yes, Selena?"

"When you have the baby, where will it sit?"

"Well hopefully we'll have a new house by then, so we'll get a bigger table that will have room for the baby's high chair."

"Oh." She paused. "Mia?"

"Hmmm?"

"Is your baby gonna share a room with Mommy's baby?"

"No, Sel, I don't think so."

"Oh." She looked down the table. "Daddy?"

"Selena?" he mocked good-naturedly.

"Why are you mad at Emmy?"

Silence filled the table as everyone waited to see his response. It was no secret that there had been a lot of tension between Emma and Sam and Jason lately.

"Well Selena, your sister has been making some bad choices lately and I'm not very happy with her because of it."

"Oh my God." Emma dropped her fork, making a loud, clattering noise as it smacked into her glass plate.

"What? You don't think you've been making bad choices?"

"By defending Brittany, and then stepping in when that girl was trying to fight Courtney? No, I don't."

"It is not your responsibility to fight everyone's battles for them."

"Seriously, Dad? Sonny and Carly are your best friends, and we've been close to their kids for our entire lives. If I didn't step up, then I wouldn't be the person you raised me to be."

"That's just it, Emma. We didn't raise you to get in fights, or spend your entire weekend drinking, or let your schoolwork fall behind. You've given up on everything!"

"What do you mean!?" surprisingly, it wasn't Emma who responded; it was Maddie. "You _forced_ Emma and me into going to Madison, where we are bullied and treated badly just because of Trevor! Do you really expect Emma to not defend herself? I'm about ready to drink myself into a coma with how much I have to deal with every day from these Madison kids!"

"Madelyn Lila…" Jason began.

"No, I don't want to hear it from you. Emma's only doing what's right. You're the one who is wrong here." Maddie slid her chair back, Emma following her lead as the two girls went upstairs.

Gabe sighed, running a hand over his face. He knew that he was going to have to be the one to patch up the problem between his parents and sisters. Honestly, he was on Emma and Maddie's side here. How could they force them to stay in a school where they were being bullied?

Mia sat in shock, not really knowing what to say. She had never seen Maddie yell at Jason, _ever_, and Emma hadn't until recently. It was unnerving to see how undone the Morgan family was becoming.

Katie stirred her food around nervously. Sure, she had heard from people that Madison was treating the PCH kids badly, but she never really gave it a second thought. After all, she, Ava, and Jacelyn were all at NYCS, so what happened at Madison didn't really affect her. But she hadn't realized her sisters were some of the people being bullied.

"Mommy?" Selena's eyes welled up with tears when she noticed that Sam was crying.

The brunette mother lifted her youngest child out of her chair. "Shhh, it's okay, baby." She wiped at her cheeks. "Well, I was going to tell you all that you're going to have a little brother, but I guess your sisters ruined that."

And as soon as Sam finished speaking about her little _miracle baby_, of course, Gabe couldn't help but snap. "No, _you_ ruined it." He stormed out of the room, going upstairs.

Mia sighed and followed. "Gabe!" she disappeared from view.

Sam, Jason, Katie, and Selena sat at the table, not really sure how to react. But it was clear that things with the Morgans were definitely not the same as they had been before the Text Message Killer.

**Kristina**

At fifteen years old, Kristina Corinthos-Davis never imagined her life to be the way it was now. She had a 4.0 GPA, rich parents, the most amazing siblings anyone could have, and a great boyfriend. Who would have thought that she would now be married to a man she could hardly stand to be in the same room with anymore, with twins, a son conceived from rape, a stepdaughter, and a deceased stepson?

But it had all started with that "great" boyfriend who hadn't ended up being so great after all. Kiefer Bauer had seemed like every parent's dream. He played sports, had good grades, he was polite, and the large trust fund helped too. The first time he had smacked her, it was because she didn't want to go to a party with him. The first time he _really_ hit her, she had stood him up in front of his friends. And the time he beat her up so badly she almost died, it was because she broke up with him.

No one had even known she was pregnant. Kiefer and his parents had moved away from Port Charles, and she didn't really have to worry about hiding it, but she didn't want anyone to know. She stayed home most of the time, finishing out her senior year on online school. In February, she gave birth to a son.

Alexis and Sonny had been furious at first, but then they understood that their daughter needed to make these decisions by herself. Kristina named her little boy Wesley Michael Davis.

But when Wesley was two weeks old, Kiefer reappeared. At that time, Kristina had been suffering from post-partum depression. When he asked to take the baby and have him come live with him, Kristina agreed. Wesley had been screaming all day, and there was no one at home to help her with him and she was exhausted, so she wasn't thinking clearly.

When Alexis came home that night and Kristina told her what had happened, she had called the police and told them that Kiefer kidnapped the baby. But as hard as they tried, it seemed as if he had just disappeared into thin air. Kristina cried for her baby every night, and then she realized that wasn't getting her anywhere, so she jumped into a relationship with Ethan Lovett.

Ethan already had a three month old daughter named Haley, with his ex-wife Lisa Niles. He and Kristina started to date, and they moved quickly. Ethan came home one day and told her that Lisa called him and said she was pregnant with his baby, but he wanted to leave her. He got custody of Haley and would be taking their new baby as soon as he was born.

Lisa gave birth to Benjamin Luke Lovett. Ethan immediately gained custody of Ben, just like he had with Haley. Kristina found out she was pregnant on the day Ben was born, and had Logan Samuel and Olivia Michaela Davis nine months later, and everything was good.

Kristina never expected to see her son again.

But suddenly, there he was, and now he was living with them and she had changed his last name back to Davis (though she didn't change his middle name back to Michael, even though she should have). Wes wasn't what she imagined, at all, and she wasn't sure how to feel about that. Sometimes, she would look at him and remember how she hadn't loved him enough when he was born. And then others, she would remember crying and begging for her baby back.

Kristina looked up from her coffee just as Wes came down the stairs. She immediately lowered her head back down.

"Good morning." She greeted, trying to put a little cheer in her voice for his benefit.

"Morning." He grabbed a Poptart from the cabinet.

She wasn't sure what to say, but she wanted to keep the conversation going. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Mmhmm."

"Um, do you like any girls at school yet?"

Wes gave her a look. "Kristina, you know that I like Haley. I know a lot of people think it's weird, but I don't care. I like her, and I'm pretty sure she likes me, so nothing else matters." He slung his backpack over his shoulder. "I'll see you after school."

"Bye." Kristina sighed. It seemed like she never said anything right to him.

There was only one person she knew she could talk to about this.

**Claudia**

"Hi, Kristina. What brings you by?" Claudia Zacchara Corinthos asked her stepdaughter.

"I wanted to talk to you about something. Is Dad home?"

"He's at the office, but I can call him if you want me…"

"No!" Kristina interrupted. "I just want to talk to you."

"Okay." Claudia sat down on the couch, patting the spot beside her. "What's up?"

"How can you love Izzie?" Kristina blurted out. "Some freak that you didn't know, _still_ don't know, raped you and you had a child with him. You will never know who he was, or be able to get back what he took from you. How can you just look at her and love her and want to be her mother?"

Claudia was a little taken aback by her sudden increase in volume, but she had wondered if this conversation would come one day. She smiled sympathetically at Kristina.

"Our situations are a little bit different, Kristina. I was 22 when Izzie was born; you were only 17 when you had Wes. I was also prepared a lot better." She wondered what the right thing to say was. "Even though it's been 23 years, I can remember the night everything happened like it was yesterday. It was a Saturday, and it was raining outside, but not very windy. I had gotten in a huge fight with my father and gone to a bar in Brooklyn; we didn't live in Port Charles at that time.

"I drank a lot, so much that I probably couldn't have told you my name. Some guy came up to me, and he was nice, but I wasn't interested. I just wanted to go back home and go to bed. But he wouldn't let me, and he was a lot bigger. As you know, he raped me, and when I woke up the next morning, I went home and only told Johnny.

"After that, I started being kind of promiscuous. I would sleep with whoever I wanted, whenever I wanted. I didn't find out I was pregnant until I was four and a half months along, and I was terrified that the drinking I had done had damaged the baby. I knew that I had to be pregnant by the guy who raped me, since he was the only one who matched up with the timeline. I went through the rest of that pregnancy trying to calm down and actually focus on being a mother, because I knew that I couldn't give my baby up.

"When Izzie was born, I didn't know how to feel. I was holding this beautiful, tiny little girl in my arms and I knew that she needed me and that she loved me, regardless of how she came into the world. Johnny told me he would help me however I needed, and we moved to an apartment in Port Charles together. But just because I was trying to be happy didn't mean that I could forget. Sometimes, when it was raining especially, I would remember every little detail of that night, and I would have to give Izzie to Johnny and go out and do something, _anything_ to forget. That's how I met your father.

"We both wound up at Jake's, me because of my memories, him because of his pain over losing Lila. We were drunk and we slept together, and a month later, I found out I was pregnant. Your father had given me his number, but I hadn't used it. I knew that he obviously loved his child that he lost, and I didn't want to take the opportunity away from him to be a father to this child, so I called.

"We met up and he explained to me that he had four children- at the time, Dante was 17 and he had just met him for the first time, Michael was 9, you were 8, and Morgan was 6. He told me he had just gotten divorced from Carly, and all he wanted was to have a relationship with his kids. We started to get closer, but what really brought us together was losing Clay, or so we thought. He told me he could be a father to Izzie, if I wanted him to, and I agreed. We got engaged, and then married, and you know the rest."

Kristina frowned. "But I still don't understand. I don't feel that connection with Wes the way you do with Izzie."

"Krissy, it's understandable. He's sixteen years old, and you don't know him very well, not that that's your fault. You're not going to automatically feel that connection. But you have to open up and let yourself love him."

Something in Kristina's demeanor changed, and Claudia could tell that she had gotten through to her.

"Thank you." Kristina hugged her. Claudia watched her leave, hoping that things with Wes weren't damaged beyond repair.

**Brenna**

Brenna Corinthos walked into the gymnasium at Madison Academy. There were signs all over the school saying that there were cheerleading tryouts before lunch today, and she figured that she might as well go and see what they were capable of.

When she walked in, Brenna quickly realized that there were no PCH kids there. She found a seat in the back and watched.

"Okay, everyone! First order of business. If you go to PCH, you might as well leave now, because none of you are worthy enough to be on my squad." Brianna Edwards announced. Brenna's mouth dropped open; how could she ban all of the PCH girls from her squad?

After watching them, Brenna felt a little bit better. They were nowhere near the skill level of PCH's squad, and she wouldn't have felt like hanging around with a bunch of snobs anyway. But it still bothered her that she wasn't even given the option to join the squad.

The sophomore exited the gym and walked through the hallway, keeping her head down and her eyes glued to the floor. Once she got out of the main area where a lot of students always seemed to be, she started to look for faces she recognized. She found the one she was looking for quickly.

"Emma!" Brenna approached her older brother's best friend.

"Hey, Bren." Emma gave her a smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. Brenna wondered what was wrong with her, but she knew Emma would deny everything.

"So I just went to the Madison cheerleading tryouts."

Emma frowned. "What happened?"

"As soon as I sat down, Brianna announced that no PCH girls were allowed to try out because we're not worthy enough to be on her squad." Emma rolled her eyes. "But I sat and watched anyway, and they suck!"

Emma raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Really!"

Madison and PCH were in different divisions, so their sports teams never played each other, which in turn meant that their cheerleaders had never gone up against each other. Emma had never seen the Madison cheerleaders perform before.

"Like how bad?"

"Brianna can barely do a toe touch."

Emma smiled, a real smile this time, and Brenna was a little scared by how deep her dimples got. That usually meant she was planning something.

"This is _perfect_."

"How?"

"I don't know yet, but I'm gonna plan something. Lemme talk to Court and Brittany, and if we think of anything, I'll let you know."

"M'kay." Brenna watched as Emma walked away. A few people looked at her crazily when she started to laugh out loud.

Brenna just shook her head with a smile. _This_ was the Emma that everyone knew.

**Madison PCH Kids**

Maddie walked over to the PCH lunch table, immediately feeling dread creep into her when she saw Emma, Brittany, and Courtney huddled together, all of them with huge smiles on their faces.

"What's going on?" she asked wearily, setting her tray down on Brittany's other side.

"Oh, nothing." Brittany practically sang.

"Something's happening."

"The Madison cheer team sucks!" Courtney blurted out, making Emma and Brittany slap her arms.

"And we know this how?"

"Brenna saw them at the tryouts!"

"And that's good why…?"

"Because, Mads! We can sabotage them!"

"How are we going to do that?"

"We'll get all of our PCH girls at Madison together, train like crazy, and then challenge Brianna to a showdown. She won't be able to back down, because then that would be letting me win, and we'll say whichever team wins the cheer off gets to be Madison's official cheerleading squad!" Emma announced.

"It's brilliant!" Brittany cackled, earning laughs from Emma and Courtney.

"What's brilliant?" Zack questioned, sitting on Emma's other side.

"Nothing." The three girls immediately answered. Zack looked to Maddie, who just shook her head and started to eat her lunch.

Emma opened her mouth to speak, but she was confused when she saw how weird Maddie and Brittany (who were sitting across from her) were looking behind her head. Emma went to turn around, and was surprised when she suddenly had a bowl of macaroni and cheese on her head.

"That's for smashing out my headlights." The girl sneered.

Emma immediately knew who it was. Cecily had been a punk since day one, and she had met her in middle school. She and Mia had busted Cecily's headlights out before.

Before anyone knew what was happening, Emma had taken the bowl off of her head and sent it sailing across the room. It smacked Cecily in the back and the girl turned around with a shocked look on her face.

Emma went over to her slowly. Cecily was taller, so she had to look up at her. Emma grabbed a handful of the macaroni and cheese that was in her hair and smeared it across Cecily's face.

"Yellow is _definitely_ not your color." She commented.

Cecily's hand balled into a fist, but before she could do anything, Zack stepped between the two girls.

"You better just walk away." He threated, moving so that he completely covered Emma.

"Of course, you need your little boyfriend to fight your battles for you, don't you?" Cecily taunted.

Emma moved around Zack. "No, I need him to keep me out of jail for murder." Cecily's eyes widened. "Walk away. And remember, I've knocked out your headlights before and I am not afraid to do it again."

Cecily rolled her eyes. "Whatever." She walked away.

Emma watched her walk and wasn't surprised when she saw that she sat down at Brianna's lunch table. Brianna noticed her stare and waved at Emma with a big smile. Emma smiled back and flipped her off.

Emma stormed out of the cafeteria. She didn't even have to turn around to know that Zack, Connor, Courtney, Maddie, and Brittany had followed her.

"You smashed her headlights out on her car?" Courtney asked in surprise. "Why didn't I get an invite?"

"Mia helped me." Emma answered. "It was sophomore year. We were at a party and she had been hitting on…" she trailed off, but everyone knew she was talking about Joey. Emma shook her head. "Just drop it. I'm going home."

"Emma…"

"What, Maddie? I'm not going to stay at school all day with macaroni and cheese in my hair." She didn't have anything else to say. "See you guys later."

The five of them watched her walk out, wondering how she was going to retaliate.

**Aubrey**

Aubrey walked into NYCS's cafeteria, finding an empty table quickly. She sat down and began to eat the lunch her mother packed for her- a ham and cheese sandwich, celery sticks, and a bottle of water.

Five months ago, she had been barely known by any of the PCH students, until she started to date Connor Jacks. The Crew had seemed untouchable, like they were in a completely different category than any other high schoolers. Connor and his friends, who she thinks he calls the Dream Team, were especially intriguing.

But after watching them go through their problems- Emma's abusive boyfriend, Mia getting pregnant, Courtney's eating disorder, Maddie's boyfriend dying for her- she realized that they weren't as different as she was. Sure, none of these had ever happened to her, but they could.

It also helped that now she knew she had siblings. For her entire life, it had just been Aubrey and her mother, but now she had Spencer, Aiden, Colton, Nattie, and especially Paige to make up for all of the loneliness. And while Nikolas hadn't made any extra effort to really get to know her, Paige and Nattie had. Through it all, she learned that the Crew wasn't as amazing as they seemed, and she was now just one of them.

"Hey, is this seat taken?" Aubrey was snapped out of her thoughts by a boy's voice. She looked up, coming face to face with Ryan Rosco. He was a year older than her, and they had only spoken a couple of times, mostly because he dated Chloe J and she dated Connor and they felt kind of left out sometimes, but now they were both single.

"No, go ahead." Ryan set his tray down across from her. "So, what brings you over here?"

"Well, I don't really know anyone else except for them," he motioned across the cafeteria to where Chloe J, Paige, Nate, Gabe, and Hunter were sitting, "and that's kind of out of the question. Gabe and Hunter give me threatening looks every time I even get near Chloe J."

"You guys did seem like you were pretty happy, and then you just suddenly broke up." Aubrey observed.

"Maybe I'll tell you that story someday." He smirked. "Besides, you and Connor were the same way."

"Not really. Everyone knew that he was in love with Maddie; I just couldn't see it. Plus, watching your boyfriend go through lock-up kind of changes you."

"Yeah, I bet."

"So what do you usually do at lunch? Pull a Mean Girls and eat in the bathroom?"

Ryan laughed. "No. Normally I sit with Daniel Zacchara, but he had to go make up a test for one of his classes. I figured you look pretty lonely, so why not? Do you always sit alone?"

"Depends. Sometimes I sit with Kailey Franco; sometimes Nattie comes and sits with me. It all just has to do with what day it is."

"Well I'll be your lunch buddy from now on, if you want."

"Yeah, I'd like that."

"So we're friends now, right?"

Aubrey smiled and extended her hand across the table. "Friends." Ryan shook it and they laughed.

**Rachel**

Rachel knocked on the door to McCall and Jackal PI, hearing her mother shout for her to come in. She opened up the door slowly and entered, smiling.

"Hey, Sam."

"Hi, Rae. Here, sit down." She gestured towards the chair next to hers. "Would you like water or anything?"

"No, thank you." She paused. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"Well, I just wanted to let you know in person that in April, you will be having a little brother."

"Wow, that's amazing! Congratulations!" Rachel hesitantly hugged her. While she and Sam spoke a couple times a week, they weren't really on a mother-daughter level, which made both of them sad. But, it was hard to connect with your long lost relative when you have other things to worry about.

"Thank you. I'm glad you're excited. You seem to be the only one."

"What do you mean? Did everyone else want a girl?" Rachel was familiar with Emma, Gabe, Maddie, Katie, and Selena, and she had met them all a couple of times, especially the youngest since she played with Sophia pretty often, but she knew that they didn't really consider her to be their sibling. Since the older four were so close in age, they had always had each other, and then she randomly just came in after never being involved with them.

Sam sighed. "Selena did. Katie hasn't really talked much about it. But I'm starting to see that Emma and the twins are completely against the idea of me having another child."

"Really? Why do you think that?"

"Well Emma has been on this self-destructive path lately. Her grades are falling behind, she's been going out and partying the whole weekend, and she's barely ever home. She got in a fight at school the other day, and I just don't know what to do about her. I'm completely out of ideas, and I don't know how to make her feel better."

"I wish I had some suggestions for you, but I don't really know her well enough to tell you anything." Rachel stated.

"Maybe you should start spending more time with them." Sam offered. "It can only help, right? Maybe having an older sister to talk to will help Emma out. She's used to be the oldest, and the protector. It'll be nice to have someone do the job for her for a change. Up until you came along, the closest thing she had to an older sister was Josslyn."

"Yeah, it would be nice to get to know them better." Rachel agreed. "I love that I have all these younger brothers and sisters now, but I'm just not sure where to start with them. I don't want to intrude on their lives."

"Just don't go barreling in. Start off slow, like having them bring Selena to the park to hang out with you and Sophia. Or maybe dinner, or shopping. Something simple. They'll respond."

"I'm not so sure."

"Want me to give you a little hint?" Rachel nodded, motioning for her to continue. "You've already got Selena in love with you. Katie's always felt a little left out by the older three, and since she just found out Jason's not her father, I think she would respond well to you since he's not your biological father either. With the older three, Emma is very easy to love, if she lets you love her. Gabe will be closed off. The way to get to both of them is through Maddie; she's the most reasonable, and if they see that she is okay with you, then they will start to open up a little more."

"Thank you." Rachel smiled. "I'll call you and try and set up something with them, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks for coming by, Rae. It's always good to see you."

"You, too. Congratulations on the little boy, and I can't wait to meet him." She hugged Sam again and then exited.

Rachel honestly hoped that she would be able to connect with her younger half-siblings. But something told her that it wouldn't be as easy as Sam said.

**Haley**

Haley walked into Kelly's, immediately seeing Wes at a table in the corner. She went over and sat across from him, dropping her backpack onto the floor. She still had on her Madison uniform and he couldn't help but laugh; he went to NYCS, so he didn't have to go through all of that.

"Wow, nice outfit."

"Shut up." She said irritably. "Did you order for me?"

"Yeah, a bacon cheeseburger, curly fries, and a Mountain Dew, just like you asked."

"Good." She could feel him studying her. "What?"

"What happened?"

"Nothing."

"Haley…"

"It's just these stupid Madison kids, okay? They won't leave any of us alone, and it's starting to get on my last nerve."

Wes's eyes darkened. "Do you need me to talk to someone?"

Haley rolled her eyes. "You went to PCH for, like, a week. You're not really going to have an impact."

"Hey, I was there longer than a week!" he said, pretending to be defensive. "But seriously. If someone's bothering you, I can have a talk with them."

"That won't be necessary."

"You just say the word, and I'll be there."

"I can handle it."

"I swear that I will knock them out. One punch." He continued as if she never spoke.

Haley burst out laughing. "Yeah, I doubt your scrawny little arms could really do that."

"They're not scrawny!" Wes flexed, but she was right. Even though he did have some muscle, he was still pretty skinny. "Well, I guess they are a little."

The bell over the door rang and the two teenagers instinctively looked up to see who entered. Haley's head immediately lowered when she saw who it was.

**Chloe J**

Chloe J walked into Kelly's with Brendan right behind her. She scanned the diner, as she did every time she came in, and caught Haley's eye right before she stared down at her table.

"Go get us a table." She commanded.

"Yes ma'am." Brendan fake saluted and walked over towards the empty tables.

Chloe J went over to Haley's table, her heels tapping loudly against the floor. She stopped when she was in front of it.

"Hello, Wesley." She greeted. She didn't really know the boy, but he was technically Emma's cousin, so she figured she should be nice.

"Chloe J." he responded.

Haley sighed and met her eyes. "Look, I don't want things to be awkward between us. I know that Christian is your twin brother and you have all kinds of loyalty to him, and since we broke up…"

"Hales, will you relax? I'm not over here to fight with you. I completely agree with you that things shouldn't be awkward. It's not like you broke my brother's heart or anything. You guys broke up on friendly terms, and I considered you to be one of my friends. I don't want that to change."

"Then it won't." Haley agreed.

"Good." Chloe J smiled at her. "I'm not gonna hug you or anything, cause I think both of us would feel way too weird about that."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Haley laughed. "I'll see you later, Chloe J."

"See ya." The blonde went back over to where Brendan was sitting and sat across from him. She flipped her hair over her shoulder as he stared at her, one eyebrow raised. "What?"

"No catfight?"

Chloe J rolled her eyes. "I'm more mature than that."

"Uh-huh."

"What reason do I have to be mad at her? It was a mutual decision between her and Chris. I'm not going to be upset with her for that. Sometimes, you just fall out of love with people."

Chloe J wasn't sure if she was talking about Christian and Haley anymore, or her and Ryan. The break-up hadn't been her choice; if it was up to her, they would probably still be together, but she always wondered if part of the problem was that Ryan had fallen out of love with her. She knew that she was mostly to blame for keeping her pregnancy scare/attempted abortion a secret, but she had always felt like there had to be more behind it.

But now, Chloe J didn't really regret the break-up. She and Brendan had a good thing going, and she was finally happy again, which she didn't think would be possible after the whole TMK thing. She just wished all of her friends had as good of luck as her.

"So, how are things at home lately?" Chloe J wondered, trying to change the subject.

Brendan sighed. His mother, Elizabeth Webber, drove him absolutely crazy. "It's insane. I never thought that my mom could act like more of a psycho, but she is. All she talks about is Stella and the coma and how she thinks she'll never wake up."

Chloe J did find it a little strange that she and Brendan had a mutual sibling, but the whole town of Port Charles was practically incest anyway, so it's not like it was unusual.

Brendan noticed that she got quiet, and he immediately knew why. "Have you gone to see her yet?" Chloe J shook her head. "You need to go. I said I would go with you."

"It's something I've gotta do on my own." She finally looked at him. "Do you care if we do this another time? I…I need to go see her."

"Sure." He stood up, grabbing her jacket off of the back of her chair and helping her get it onto her shoulders. "Call me later, okay?"

"M'kay." They hugged quickly and walked outside while he went to pay for their drinks.

The drive to the hospital was short, and before she knew it, Chloe J was walking onto the floor that her half-sister had been stuck on for the past couple of months. She went to the front desk.

"Hi, may I help you?" a young nurse questioned.

"I'm here to see Stella Hunter."

"I'm sorry, it's family only."

"She's my sister. My name is Chloe J Hunter."

The nurse pulled up the list of people allowed to visit her and verified Chloe J was on it.

"Okay, you're all set to go, Chloe."

"It's Chloe _J_." she corrected. "And thank you." She turned and went down the hallway towards Stella's room.

The amount of wires was overwhelming. Stella looked tiny in her hospital bed, and Chloe J couldn't believe that this was her sister.

"Hey Stella." Chloe J said quietly, coming into the room cautiously. She was on a ventilator and the tubes were scary. She sat down next to the bed slowly and grabbed Stella's hand. "I'm sorry that I haven't been here to see you. I know that Dad and Chris come a lot, and of course Elizabeth.

"You're not really missing much out here. I'm sure you would have gone to NYCS, and it's pretty boring. There's not really any kind of challenge there like there was at PCH, and it's lonely without the other half of our school. They're definitely suffering way worse than us. Those Madison kids are bullies, and they mess with the people in the Crew all the time."

Chloe J took a deep breath before continuing. "Stella, I'm sorry for being such a bad sister. I've realized in the past couple of weeks that you were never the enemy. You didn't ask to be born; it was Dad cheating with Elizabeth that ruined my parents' relationship, not you being born. You were never the one to blame, but I had to lash out and make life miserable for you. I'm so sorry that I was never around for you, and that you never had me to look up to. And I promise that if you get through this… _when_ you get through this…I'll be right here, and I'll make things right between us. I love you." She kissed Stella's forehead and walked out.

**Mia**

Mia stood in the kitchen in front of the sink, scrubbing at the dinner dishes. Dinner tonight hadn't been as awkward, mostly because Emma went to Zack's and Maddie and Connor were at the Metro Court. Gabe stayed silent, and Katie and Selena carried on most of the conversation. Mia hoped that the rift in the Morgan family would be fixed soon.

"Hey Mia, Jason and I would like to talk to you. Can you come to his office?" Sam asked.

"Sure." Mia finished drying the cup she was holding and then put it on the counter. She walked down the hallway to Jason's office. "Yeah?"

"How are you feeling?" Jason began. "How is the morning sickness and all that?"

"I'm fine, kind of tired. The morning sickness is almost completely gone, and it'll just come randomly."

"Yeah, you're almost out of the first trimester now." Sam stated.

"Alright, I know you guys didn't call me in here to talk about my baby, so what is it?"

"You caught us." Sam admitted. "We want to know about our kids."

"What do you mean?"

"How have Emma, Gabe, and Maddie been lately? We can't ask without them biting our heads off, and we're worried."

"They're all still adjusting to everything that happened at PCH; we all are ."

"That's it?"

"I don't know what you want me to say, Jason. Maddie seems like she's doing okay. She's not as upset about Parker as she was a couple of months ago, and Connor is helping her heal from everything. You can clearly see that Emma's not doing that well, and Zack is the only one she feels safe with."

"What about Gabe?" Sam prodded. "How is our son?"

"He seems okay to me, but I don't know. He's completely focused on being protective and turning into a father. He doesn't like to talk about what happened at PCH, and neither do I, so we don't." Mia shrugged. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go to bed."

"Goodnight. Thank you for telling us." Sam smiled at her.

"You're welcome." Sam hugged her quickly and then Mia went upstairs. Instead of going to Maddie's room like she was supposed to, she went to Gabe's.

"Hey." He greeted when he saw her. "What's wrong?"

Mia walked further into the room, shutting the door behind her but staying near it. "Your parents just cornered me and started asking questions about you, Mads, and Emma. Gabe, you need to talk to her."

"Who?"

"Emma! She's out of control, and if she doesn't stop now, your parents are going to flip out and I don't want things to end like how they did with my parents."

"Mia, no matter how upset my mom and dad get, they won't kick her out."

"I know, but still. It doesn't feel good when your relationship with your parents is destroyed."

"Come here." Mia came over and sat next to him. Gabe put his arm around her shoulders and she leaned her head onto him. "Zack's got this under control. I don't think there's anything I can do that will make her change."

Mia sighed. "I guess you're right." She looked up at him. "I love you."

"I love you too." Gabe answered almost immediately. Mia didn't say it often, and when she did, she needed to hear it back. He leaned down and kissed her.

"Maddie's room, Mi." Sam scolded gently as she opened the door.

"She's just saying goodnight." Gabe responded. "I'll see you in the morning."

"M'kay." Mia stood up and hugged him quickly, then went to Maddie's room, silently praying that Emma wouldn't go down the same road she had.

_Do you think things will get bad enough with Brittany that she'll switch schools? _

_Do you want Tyler and Courtney to be friends, or should she still be upset with him for their break-up and giving her chlamydia? _

_Thoughts on the beginning of the Emma vs. Brianna showdown?_

_Will the awkwardness between Emma and Paige ever end?_

_Were you surprised that Chloe J called Mia? What did you think of the NYCS girls thinking Gabe was gay? _

_Do you want Josslyn and Aiden to get married? _

_Any thoughts on Izzie's pregnancy?_

_Are the Emma and Maddie justified in their anger towards Sam and Jason?_

_What did you think of the Kristina/Claudia conversation? There won't be anymore Kristina POV's but I wanted to get into Wes's background and figured the best way to tell it would be through Kristina, and I also wanted to tell the story behind Claudia and Sonny, plus Clay and Izzie._

_Do you think Emma, Courtney, and Brittany's plan will actually work, and is this a good thing?_

_Cecily was mentioned in That's Life, though not by name. During Mia's get well videos after she was attacked by the TMK, Emma mentioned that Mia helped her bust the headlights out of a girl's car, who is Cecily. Things are about to get a little messier for the PCH/Madison fued. _

_Is there a possible relationship blooming between Ryan and Aubrey? _

_Do you want Rachel to connect with her teenaged siblings? _

_Haley/Wes, Chloe J/Haley, Chloe J/Brendan thoughts? _

_Do you think Chloe J genuinely wants to get closer to Stella, or does she just feel guilty?_

_Do you think Mia is right about Gabe needing to talk to Emma, or should they just let Zack handle it?_

_I really wasn't going to post this since I've gotten hardly any response, but I decided that I might as well since it was finished so PLEASE leave your comments._


	4. Between Order and Randomness

**Chapter 4: Between Order and Randomness**

Sorry for the long wait! I just started school and I'm working two jobs right now, so I've been extremely busy! Thank you to everyone who has left comments, it's good for me to know what you are thinking and your thoughts are really helping to shape where this story goes!

WARNING: Character death in this chapter

_Characters:_

_Rachel Janacek (Sam and Sonny)- 23_

_Emma Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 17_

_Gabe Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Maddie Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Katie Morgan (Sam and John; raised by Jason)- 14_

_Selena Morgan (Stella and Tyler; adopted by Sam and Jason)- 4_

_Morgan Corinthos (Carly and Sonny)- 29_

_Josslyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 22_

_Courtney Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 17_

_Connor Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 16_

_Jacelyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 14_

_Chloe J Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Christian Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Lukas Spencer (Maxie and Lucky)- 16_

_Leah Zacchara (Maxie and Johnny)- 15_

_Ava Zacchara (Maxie; adopted by Johnny)- 14_

_Daniel Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 17_

_Mia Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 16_

_Allie Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 14_

_Izzie Zacchara (Claudia)- 23_

_Clay Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 22_

_Zack Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 17_

_Hunter Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 16_

_Brittany Corinthos (Sonny and Brenda)- 16_

_Brenna Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 15_

_Lindsey Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 23_

_Nate Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 17_

_Noah Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 16_

_Spencer Cassadine (Nikolas and Courtney)- 28_

_Aiden Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 22_

_Paige Cassadine (Nikolas and Emily)- 17_

_Aubrey Crowell (Nadine and Nikolas)- 16_

_Nattie Cassadine (Nikolas and Brook Lynn)- 15_

_Colton Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 14_

_Wes Janacek (Kristina and Kiefer)- 16_

_Haley Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 16_

_Logan Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Livvie Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Molly Lansing Webber (Ric and Alexis)- 28_

_Addie Lansing (Ric and Elizabeth)- 16_

_Cameron Webber (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 29_

_Jake Spencer (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 24_

_Brendan Webber (Elizabeth)- 17_

_Stella Hunter (Elizabeth and Matt)- 16_

_Alec Barrett (Brenda and Aleksander)- 23_

_Ashlyn Falconeri (Lulu and Dante)- 15_

_Lila Rae Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 28_

_Jamie Quartermaine (Dillon and Georgie)- 17_

_Tanner Quartermaine (Dillon and Lulu)- 16_

_Julian Quartermaine (AJ)- 15_

_Grace Quartermaine (Skye)- 14_

_Tyler Drake (Lisa and Patrick)- 17_

_Ian Niles (Lisa)- 14_

_Carrie Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 15_

_Ryan Rosco (Faith)- 17_

_Dominic Rosco (Faith)- 14_

_Prue Webber (Molly and Cam)- 0_

_Henry Spencer (Lindsey and Jake)- 0_

_Sophia Janacek (Rachel and Kiefer)- 4_

_Kailey Franco (Franco)- 16_

_Reed Worth (Maggie)- 16_

_Rhiannon Deusa- 16_

_Lauren Grayson- 16_

_Brianna Edwards- 17_

_Deceased:_

_Bella Jacks (Jax and Brenda)- 15_

_Mason Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 15_

_Jazzie Corinthos (Sonny and Kate)- 14_

_Lola Zacchara (Claudia and Nikolas)- 14_

_Ben Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 15_

_Liam Drake (Elizabeth and Patrick)- 15_

_Matt Zacchara (Lulu and Johnny)- 17_

_Joey Falconeri (Dante and Brenda)- 17_

_Trevor Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 16_

_Taylor Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 14_

_Parker Ruiz (Manny)- 16_

_Corey Spinelli (Spinelli)- 15_

_Bailey Spencer (Lucky and Siobhan)- 15_

_Max Franco (Franco)- 15_

_Lily Mir (Leyla and Aleksander)- 15_

**Chapter 4: Between Order and Randomness**

**Emma**

"Good morning!" Courtney walked up to Emma's locker. "How are you on this wonderful Thursday?"

Emma shrugged. "I've been better. What are we doing this weekend?"

"I'm sure we'll find some kind of party, and if we don't, then we can always just go to a bar or something like that. The two of us have a way of finding fun wherever we go."

"Did I hear you ladies say you are looking for a party?" the girls looked up as a boy about their age approached them. He had brown hair, brown eyes, and was a couple of inches taller than Courtney, meaning he practically towered over Emma (though he was still shorter than Zack).

Emma looked around, and then back at the boy. "Wow, are you talking to us?"

"What do you mean?" he questioned.

"You know, just that we're PCH students and you Madison punks want absolutely nothing to do with us. C'mon, Court." Emma grabbed Courtney's hand and started to pull her away.

"Wait!" the boy ran after them, going to Emma's other side. "My name's Tate, Tate McClelland. What are yours?"

"Courtney Jacks."

"Emma Morgan."

"You see, I don't really agree with the ideas my classmates have. I think that if you're down to party, then you should be able to regardless of what school you come from. That being said, there's going to be a party at my house tomorrow night and I want both of you to be there."

Emma and Courtney looked at each other, silently debating on whether they should or not. The younger of the two nodded slightly, making Courtney look at Tate.

"We'll be there."

"Great!" the bell rang.

"I'll see you later, Em." Courtney went down the hallway.

"So, Emma. How about you and me ditch and go shopping for our party outfits? I'm in need of a date."

Emma rolled her eyes. "No, thanks."

"Come on. A pretty girl like you can't be chained down. You've got to keep your options open."

Emma didn't particularly like the guy, especially since she had whatever you would call it going on with Zack, but she didn't want to spend her whole day at Madison.

"Well, when you put it that way, it sounds a lot more tempting. Let's get out of here."

"So, what do you think of this?" Emma walked out of the dressing room in a white sequined tank top, black mini skirt, and white heels.

Tate grimaced. "I don't know, I think it needs a little more cleavage."

Emma rolled her eyes; typical guy response. She went back into the changing room. She looked at the black dress she had chosen. It dipped low, showing off a lot of cleavage, and then reached down to her knees. She put it on, and then added some black heels.

When the door opened, Tate studied her closely. "Come on, girl! We need some more leg!"

Emma stared at him. "Seriously?"

"You are gorgeous. Don't you want every girl at the party tomorrow to be envious of you?"

She could just imagine all of the Madison girls now, staring at her with pure hatred. She had to keep herself from laughing out loud as she reentered her changing room.

This time, she walked out in a short, strapless, hot pink dress and black heels. Tate's eyes were focused only on her chest, until he looked further down her body.

"You're probably going to think I'm a jerk for saying this, but I don't want you to be self-conscious, or for anyone to make fun of you."

"Just say it."

"You look kind of…big."

Emma immediately went back to her dressing room. She studied herself in the mirror. It _was_ a little snug around her stomach. She quickly ripped it off, vowing to never look at that dress again. How could she have gotten so out of shape?

But the next three dresses she tried on, Tate had the same comments- too small, too tight around her stomach, maybe you need a bigger size. Emma was starting to get discouraged, and she didn't know how much more of this shopping trip she could take.

"You know, I don't think this is the right store. My best friend's mom is a fashion designer; I'm going to see if she can find something for me, and I know what you like now."

"Sounds good to me." Tate smiled at her. "I'm just trying to help you, Emma. You know that, right?"

"Yeah." But she wasn't so sure. How could someone she had just met that morning tell her that she was fat so easily? Was it common knowledge that she was gaining weight? Did everyone talk about it behind her back?

Why didn't anyone tell her?

**Zack**

Zack walked through the halls after 3rd period, his eyes scanning the crowd of people. He hadn't seen Emma at all that day, though Courtney had assured him that she was there that morning. He was determined to find her.

He spotted two familiar blondes and called out. "Britt! Connor!"

The juniors stopped, waiting for him to catch up to them. They were all on their way to lunch, so it's not like they had to worry about being late.

"Hey, have you guys seen Emma at all?"

"Nope." Connor answered.

"No. Why?"

"Because Courtney and Maddie both said that she was here this morning, but I haven't seen her at all and she isn't answering my calls or texts."

Before the TMK situation, Zack would have completely blown it off. He would have just thought that Emma needed a little space, and she would call him when she was ready. But now, he automatically went to worst case scenario, and the gears in his brain were _definitely_ spinning.

"You need to calm down. She probably just wasn't feeling well and went home to sleep." Brittany responded as they approached the cafeteria. Connor opened the door for her. "Thank you. Zack, why are you so worried anyway?"

"Really? You're gonna really ask that question? I think we all know that bad things can happen at any time." Right as he finished speaking, Courtney walked out of the bathroom across the hall.

"Hey guys." Her face was noticeably paler and he was temporarily distracted.

"You okay, Blondie?"

"I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Mmhmm."

Normally, he would have prodded more, but there were more important matters on his mind. "Have you spoken to Emma?"

"Yeah, she texted me back last period. This morning, we were invited to a party by this Madison kid named Tate McClelland. He actually seemed somewhat decent. Emma ditched school to go shopping with him for a party outfit."

Immediately, all ideas of Emma being hurt switched to ways that Zack could hurt Tate. He didn't understand why she would think it was okay to go out with some guy she just met, especially with everything going on between them.

"Oh. Really."

"Zack…" Brittany began in a warning tone.

"What?"

"You need to calm down."

"What are you talking about? I am calm."

"Look, I can say this to you because, besides Emma, you are my oldest friend. Everyone can see that you are in love with her, and that you're ready to be in a relationship or whatever. But Emma isn't ready for that yet, and if you push her, she's just going to pull away from you. Let her figure out what she wants on her own, even if it's not what you want." Courtney advised.

"Whatever. I'm going to sit down." Zack left the group and went over to the table.

All he knew was that he didn't like the idea of Emma being out with other guys. He prayed that she would realize her feelings as soon as possible, because he was ready whenever she was.

**Chloe J and Mia**

"5…6…7…8…" Chloe J counted off, watching as the girls on the NYCS cheer team did their back handsprings.

"You know, I'm really surprised they can tumble." Mia stated. She was sitting on the ground with her IPad working out possible music, while Chloe J was standing and directing the girls on tumbling so they could see what they were capable of.

"Yeah, me too. But apparently, the budget was larger back when they were in middle school and their coach paid for them all to get tumbling classes. Lucky for us, they can still do it." She bit her lip, considering her next question. "So, how have things with the Morgans been lately?"

"Fine. A lot better than being with my parents, that's for sure."

"How's Emma?"

"Chloe J, I'm not being rude, but why don't you ask her yourself? Why are the two of you practically avoiding each other?"

"We're not avoiding each other. It's just hard to be as close to someone that is going to a different school than you."

Mia smiled sympathetically. She understood that. While everyone else got to go to school and see each other every day, she was stuck in Gabe's bedroom with a laptop until he and Maddie came home. Online school had been her choice, but she kind of regretted it.

"Everyone is worried about Emma. She's been partying a lot lately, and it's like a constant thing all weekend. I tried to talk to Gabe about it, but he doesn't seem concerned. Sam and Jason tried to get information from me yesterday, but I didn't have anything to tell them."

Chloe J watched Lauren finished her back handspring. "Well what do _you_ think? You live in the same house as her, you have to have some kind of opinion."

"I think that Emma's going down a dangerous road. I know how it is; I was in the same place less than three months ago. But if she wants to, she can turn things around. She's Emma Morgan, for God's sake. She can do anything."

Chloe J wished she had the same amount of confidence in her best friend. She wasn't so sure that Emma was making the right decisions, and she couldn't believe that Courtney and Zack were just letting her destroy her life like this.

"Yeah, you're right." She agreed.

"So tomorrow is Paige's 18th birthday." Mia said. "What are we planning? I thought we would have had a big party because 18 is a big year, plus it's on a Friday."

"It's kind of hard to plan things with the whole Dream Team spread all over. Paige said she just wants to keep in low key."

"And we're going to let her?"

"What do you mean?" Chloe J questioned.

"The Dream Team does not do 'low key'. We have to do _something_."

"I don't want to rock the boat. She's having a hard time with Nikolas traveling to Russia so often, Brook Lynn still hasn't returned home, she's at a new school, and she's still getting over Zack."

"I guess you're right." Mia sighed. "Are we at least getting her a big present?"

"I don't know, I haven't talked about it to anyone else yet. Nate wants to get a cake."

"What about Courtney?"

Chloe J looked away from Rhiannon and down at the younger girl. "What about her?"

"Did you ask her what she wants to do?"

She shook her head. "I haven't talked to Courtney in a couple of days."

"So we're just going to let Paige's 18th birthday pass by like any regular day?"

Chloe J smiled. "No, Mimi. We've got a little something planned."

**Paige**

Paige couldn't believe that it was already her last day being 17. She was nearly an adult, and then she could do whatever she wanted. She had considered getting an apartment since she hates Wyndemere, but she was too scared to live on her own.

But honestly, she wasn't that excited. What did she have to look forward to? She had drifted really far apart from both Emma and Courtney, and things were super awkward with her and Zack. It's not like there would have been a big party anyway (she preferred smaller, more personal events), but now, there probably wouldn't be anything.

"Look who's here!" Nattie practically sang as she walked into the living room. Behind her was Aubrey, who set her purse down on a chair and sat on the couch next to Paige.

"Happy almost Birthday!" Aubrey said with a smile.

"You know we go to the same school and I'll see you tomorrow, right?" Paige asked, smiling just as big. She and Aubrey had barely talked when Aubrey was dating Connor, but she was glad to have the girl as a sister.

"Yeah, but I've never had siblings before that I could celebrate their birthdays. What are you gonna do? Have a huge party?"

"Paige doesn't want a party. She wants to keep it 'low-key'." Nattie answered with an eye roll, plopping down on the loveseat.

"You're only going to turn 18 once!" Aubrey reminded her.

"It's just not that big of a deal to me. I don't like being the center of attention; I'm not like Emma or Chloe J or Courtney or Mia. I like to blend in, and a birthday party just draws too much attention. I would rather just stay here and watch some movies or something."

"That is so lame!" Nattie argued. "Paige, you are finally single after a four year relationship. Have some fun!"

"I don't know how to have fun. I'm barely talking to over half of my closest friends. It's not like I have anyone to hang out with anyway."

"_Ouch_." Nattie grabbed her chest in fake hurt. "Aubrey, do you feel that burning pain deep down in your heart because Paige acts like we don't exist?" Aubrey just laughed at her antics. "Come on, P. Let us throw you a party!"

"I'm just really not in the mood for it, guys. Maybe next year."

Nattie groaned. "I don't know how we're related because I would _never_ turn down people throwing a party for me. What if it brings you closer to all of your friends?"

"Nattie, I said no, okay? Just drop it." She said.

"Fine. But one of the kids at NYCS is having a party tomorrow night. Will you at least come to that with me? Aubrey can come too, and we'll have a sister night!"

"Whoa, how did I get pulled into this?" Aubrey asked. She wasn't really the partying type and only went because of Connor back when they dated.

"Because we're gonna have a sister night." Nattie repeated. "Please, Paige?"

Paige sighed. "I'll think about it, but I doubt it. You know that I like to stay home on my birthday."

"Yeah, but you shouldn't be alone." Nattie argued. "C'mon, let's go find outfits!" the youngest of the girls grabbed her two older sisters' hands and ran upstairs.

**Nate**

"Wow, to what do we owe this pleasure?" Nate asked as he and Noah walked into the house, seeing Lindsey sitting on the couch. "Where's Henry?"

"He went to visit with his Grandpa Lucky today." Lindsey answered. "Sit down. I brought cake."

Both boys sat down immediately. The Scorpio-Drake children had inherited their mother's love for chocolate cake, and they would eat it at any opportunity.

"So, how was school?"

"Boring." Nate answered.

"Same old, same old." Noah added. "Nate, you going to that party tomorrow?"

"What party?"

"Some junior at NYCS, I think a girl named Sarah or something like that, is throwing a big party. Some of the people from the Crew have been saying that they're going."

"Who is 'some people from the Crew'?"

"Lukas, Leah, Nattie, Daniel, Katie, Ava, and Jace."

"That's it?" Lindsey asked in surprise. She had to swoop in and save her little brothers (and some of their friends) from a lot of party situations, so she was shocked to hear that hardly anyone would be taking the opportunity to go.

"Paige, Maddie, and Connor only went to parties because of everyone else, Gabe and Mia stay home because of her pregnancy, Chloe J doesn't like to deal with all the random people, and I don't know about Hunter and Britt." Nate told her.

Lindsey noticed that three people were missing from his list of close friends, one in particular catching her attention. "What about Zack, Courtney, and Emma?"

"They kind of do their own thing now."

"What do you mean?"

"They find parties at random people's houses, they go to bars, they just do whatever."

"And that doesn't upset you?"

"Why would it? I've never been that big of a drinker, so why do I care if they go or not?"

"Is he really this stupid?" Lindsey questioned Noah before turning back to Nate. "Are you upset that you and Emma have barely talked?"

"Why would I be?"

"Nathan Robert Scorpio-Drake, will you please stop acting like such an idiot! Six months ago, it was obvious to anyone with eyes that you were in love with Emma. Now, you don't ever talk about her, she never comes around, and you're acting like it's not a big deal!"

"It's not a big deal. People grow apart." Nate responded with a shrug.

"That's a terrible attitude to have. I'm glad that Emma got away from you since you don't seem to be dedicated to her at all."

"_I'm_ not dedicated?" Nate asked incredulously. Lindsey had been hoping that would get him to talk, and it seemed like it was working. "I was there for her through everything, but I'm not the person she wanted. She didn't seem to care about starting a relationship with me or even continuing our friendship, so why should I keep putting myself out there just to get shot down? I'm not going to wait around forever just so I can get my heart broken."

"Nate, you're going about this the wrong way. You need to prove to her how much you love her."

"How can I do that when I know she's in love with someone else?"

Lindsey sighed. "Zack?"

"Yes, Zack. The two of them started spending so much time together when the TMK thing started. He was the one she went to when she was upset or hurt or didn't want to go home, not me. She confided in him, and he is still to this day the only person who knows everything about when she was kidnapped. Even though it hurts and I hate to admit it, I know she doesn't love me. Maybe as a friend, but she'll never want anything more than that. Besides, Emma has changed, and not for the better."

"You have to put yourself out there. Even if you get hurt, at least you know that it wasn't meant to be, right? How do you know that Zack and Paige won't get back together and then Emma will be all alone again?"

"Zack and Paige are done, at least for right now. They avoid each other at all costs, and Zack doesn't seem to have any interest in getting back together with her."

"What about Paige?"

"What about her?"

"Is she interested in Zack?"

"Yeah, I think so."

Noah laughed. "Are you sure you're the smarter son?"

"What are you talking about?" Nate questioned in confusion.

"You and Paige both have feelings for Zack and Emma. They might like each other, but they've also liked you and Paige at one point. Why don't the two of you get together to make them jealous, and then they'll realize what a mistake they're making by being together?" Noah suggested.

Lindsey nodded her head in approval. "That's actually kinda smart, Noah."

"I have my moments." He bragged.

"Yeah, except for I don't want to use Paige."

"You wouldn't be using her; you'd be using _each other_. Talk to her about it first and see how she feels, and if she agrees, you'll know that you are both going into this completely dedicated to getting back the person you love."

Nate thought it over. Could it really work? He sighed. "I wish Mom was here. She always knew the right thing to say about this kind of stuff."

"It's been two months." Lindsey stated. "I can't believe it's been that long and we're all still alive. Mom solved every single problem any of us had."

"She was good at that." Noah agreed. "Whether it was sports, girls, or school, she always knew how to fix it."

"She was amazing." Nate sighed. "Does it still hurt for you guys?"

Lindsey gave him a sad smile. "Do you feel better about her dying and you feel guilty for it?" Nate and Noah both nodded. "Some days, I'll see things or hear something that reminds me of her, and those days are a lot rougher. But we're not supposed to just walk around in constant pain all the time. It's good that the bad feelings have faded because now we can remember all of the good times."

"You know, Linds, you're getting pretty good at these talks." Noah praised.

She smiled. "I learned from the best."

**Brittany**

"Britt?" Brittany looked up when Hunter said her name. "Look who's here."

Brittany glanced out the window and recognized her mother's car. She groaned. "Why?"

"Are you guys sure you want to go home? You can go back to my house or something." Maddie offered from the driver's seat. Connor was in the passenger's seat, and Brittany and Hunter were in the back.

"No, it's better to just find out what she wants so she'll go away." Brittany sighed. "See you guys at school tomorrow."

"See ya." Maddie said. Brittany and Hunter got out of the car and she drove off. The blonde stood, watching until they were gone. She took a deep breath and started up the driveway.

"What do you think she wants?" Hunter questioned his younger half-sister. When he saw Brittany hurting, he could kind of understand the twin bond that Maddie and Gabe had. They were practically twins, just from different mothers, and he hated when she was in any kind of pain.

"She'll probably cry and beg me to come see her more." Brittany wasn't surprised. Ever since the deaths of her maternal half-siblings, Bella Jacks and Joey Falconeri, Brenda had been a wreck. She would show up randomly and ask Brittany to come see her more often because she needed to be around her only daughter.

Hunter opened up the door so his sister could walk in ahead of him and she smiled at him in thanks. They entered the living area together.

Brenda was sitting on the couch with her head in her hands. Claudia stood at the top of the stairs, clearly not amused by her behavior. Sonny had his arms crossed and was leaning against his desk, waiting for his ex to stop crying.

"Hunter." Claudia called out. He gave his sister a dimpled smile and went upstairs. Brittany watched Claudia hug him and then Hunter disappeared into his room, though her stepmother stayed.

"Hi, Daddy." Brittany greeted, walking further into the room.

"Hey, Britt." Sonny smiled at her sympathetically, knowing that she didn't want to deal with her mother. Brittany gave him a hug and then stood next to him.

"Brittany." Brenda finally lifted her head from her hands. Her hair was greasy and it was clear that she hadn't showered in at least a day. She had mascara running down her cheeks from her tears. She tried to wipe it away, but it only smeared more and added to how insane she already looked.

"Brenda." Brittany said in a calm tone. She knew better than to freak out around her mother. It only kept her going longer.

Brenda's face showed her shock. "Y-You just called me by my first name."

"Yeah, I did. Why should I address you as anything other than what you are?"

"I'm your mother, baby." Brenda stood and came over. She reached out to grab Brittany's hand, but the sixteen year old pulled back.

"No, you're not." Brittany told her. "_That_ is my mom." She pointed towards where Claudia stood.

"Her?" Brenda practically snarled. "_I_ gave birth to you, not her! She doesn't care about you! All she cares about are her precious children!"

"Yeah, which I am included in." when she was younger, Brittany had some doubts about whether Claudia really loved her or not. But as she grew up, it was plain for anyone to see that she was loved just as much as Zack, Hunter, and Brenna (and Lola and Jazzie before their untimely deaths).

"Please don't be like this. I need you, Brittany. You and Alec are my only children left. I need you!" she clung to her, crying onto her shoulder.

Brittany could smell the alcohol on her breath and wrinkled her nose. Of course, Brenda was drunk. All she seemed to do anymore was drink.

"Well I don't need you." She pulled her mother off of her and looked into her eyes. "You don't need me either. You never needed the inconvenience of children, which is why you dumped Joey, Bella, and I off on our fathers."

"I'm sorry!" Brenda cried.

"Don't apologize. I'm glad that you did, otherwise I wouldn't be the way I am now. I love my parents more than anything in this world, and when I say 'parents', I mean Dad and Claudia, because the only thing you've ever done for me is give birth to me."

"Brittany." Brenda sobbed. "Please!"

"No. It's time for you to grow up and take responsibility for your actions. If you really cared about me, you wouldn't get drunk and then come and cry all over me."

"I'll change!"

"I don't care if you win the mother of the year award. I have absolutely no interest in ever getting to know you. I don't want you around, I don't want to see you, I don't even want to hear your voice. You are nothing to me, Brenda. You haven't been in a long time."

"That's not fair! You know that I was sick after I had your sister!"

"You had post-partum depression. So did Robin Scorpio, but she still kept her daughter, and then had two more babies after that. You dumped your three little kids off on their dads, took Alec, and left the country. You don't deserve to call yourself Bella's mother, but I'm sure that Joey turned out as screwed up as he did because of something you did, so you can say you're his mom."

"Why can't you just forgive me?"

"BECAUSE I WAS A YEAR OLD!" Brittany finally screamed. "I was barely a year old when you gave birth to your fourth child, suddenly pulled away from everyone, and gave me to my father. But you know what? I don't regret it, and I'm glad that I don't remember living with you. If you hadn't, then I wouldn't have my life. I wouldn't have Claudia."

"She's not your mother." Brenda hissed.

"She's been more of a mom than you have. She's been here for me since the day I was born. When you and Dad used to pass me back and forth, she was here, even though she had just given birth to her own baby. She loved me, even if I was the result of her husband cheating on her. And yeah, things were rough after Brenna was born and they separated and had Lola and Jazzie with other people. But did you know that when they were living apart, they still passed me back and forth with Zack, Hunter, and Brenna? And do you know why that is? Because Claudia loved me enough to want me, unlike you."

"How do you know this isn't all lies? You wouldn't remember!"

"Because my older siblings have told me, my dad has told me, Claudia told me, Sam and Jason have told me, Carly has told me, everyone has said to me how great of a mother Claudia is! You know one thing they never bring up though? How crappy of a mom you were, because I figured that one out all by myself."

"Brittany, just please forgive me. I'm sorry for all of that. I was sick and I didn't know what I was doing."

"Yeah, and then you took medicine and you were better, but that didn't matter, did it? You liked being able to travel and not have little kids holding you down. People like you who are bound to be horrible parents should just be sterilized as soon as they hit puberty." She walked past her.

"Brittany!"

Brittany walked up the stairs to where Claudia was waiting. She wrapped her arms around her. "Hi, Mom." She said loudly so that Brenda would hear her.

"Hi, baby." Claudia played along with her little game, pressing a kiss to her forehead. She wrapped an arm around Brittany's shoulder and walked down the hallway with her so they were away from Brenda. They could hear her screeching and Sonny telling Max to take her out of there. "Are you sure you're not my biological child? You certainly know all the right buttons to press, just like me."

Brittany grinned. "I'm not your kid by blood, but I am by heart." She walked into her bedroom. "Hey Claws?"

"Hmmm?"

"Thank you for always being my mom. I meant everything I said down there. I love you."

"I love you too." Claudia hugged her again.

Brittany closed her bedroom door, hoping that this conversation would be the last one Brenda needed to finally get the message that she didn't want a relationship with her.

**Emma and Zack**

Zack looked up when he heard his bedroom door open and close. Emma came in with her backpack over her shoulder and a shopping bag in her hand. She dropped her backpack onto the floor and went over to him.

"Hey, I didn't know if you were coming over." He sat up and hugged her. She hugged back tightly and then he kissed her cheek. "Where were you at school today?" he knew, but he wanted to see if she would lie.

"Some guy invited me and Court to a party tomorrow night, so I went to find something to wear."

"You couldn't have waited until _after_ school?"

Emma shrugged. "I just wasn't feeling it. I'm gonna go try this on." She went into the bathroom attached to his room.

Zack shook his head. Emma hadn't been 'feeling' school lately, and he was sure that her grades were suffering for it. Emma had always been smart and dreamed of being a doctor, so it was sad to see that she was just letting everything go.

His thoughts drifted back to Emma going to a party with this Tate guy. He didn't like when she went to parties without him because other guys weren't very likely to watch out for her if something happened, and they may take advantage of her. Plus, since the kids were from Madison, God only knows what they might do to her.

He knew that he needed to give her some space or she would start pulling away, but he _really_ didn't like the idea of her going to this party.

He wasn't sure if it was because she was going with another guy, or because he was worried about her drinking habits lately. He had been feeling a lot stronger towards Emma these past couple of months, and he was starting to realize that he was falling in love with her, which was scary. She had been his best friend since she was born, and he didn't want to ruin anything between them. She was the most important person in the world to him and he couldn't imagine hurting her.

"What do you think?"

Zack looked over as Emma came out of the bathroom. She was wearing a mint colored dress. It was strapless and covered her chest, but went to the middle of her thighs to show her legs. It was form fitting, and she was wearing black heels to match.

"You look gorgeous, Princess." he had always thought Emma was beautiful, but in this moment, staring at her in this dress, something changed inside of him and he realized just how beautiful she was.

"Are you sure?" Emma spun around, showing off the back of the dress. "You'd never lie to me, right?"

"Of course not." Zack was concerned about what she was going to say next. "Why do you ask?"

Emma turned back so he could see the front of her dress. "Do I look fat?"

Zack gulped. The dreaded question of every man in existence. He studied the dress, not seeing anything that indicated that she looked bigger.

"No, not at all."

"Really?" she walked back into the bathroom to look in the mirror. Zack got up and followed her. He stood behind her, watching her move around to look at her dress from all different angles.

"Em, stop." He put his hands on her hips to keep her in place. He moved so he was directly behind her and put his right hand on her stomach. "Your stomach is completely flat."

Emma kept her eyes glued to the mirror at the place his hand was on her stomach. "I don't look fat?"

"Princess, what brought all of this on?" he turned her around and lifted her onto the counter so they were closer to eyelevel. She looked down. "Emma."

"I was trying on dresses today and some of them were a little…tight. I think I'm gaining weight."

"Let me see." Zack lifted her up easily. "Nope, you feel about the same to me."

Emma smiled. "Stop it."

"There's that smile." Zack put her back on the counter and touched one of her dimples gently. "You don't look fat at all. You look amazing."

"Promise?" she held out her pinky.

"Promise." He put their pinkies together, locked it, and stamped it, just like she loved to do. It was kind of hard because of how much bigger his hands are, but they did it. "Was it you that thought the dresses were too tight, or was it Tate?"

Emma looked at him in alarm. "How did you know about that?"

"Courtney." Zack studied her face and could see the guilt. So she _did_ understand that they had something, whatever this is, going on between them. "Was it Tate?"

"No." she wouldn't look him in the eyes, which was one of her telltale signs that she was lying.

"Emma." He put his hand gently under her chin and brought it up so she had to look at him. "Was it Tate?"

"Uh-huh." She practically whispered.

"Change out of your dress." Zack told her, walking out of the bathroom and shutting the door behind him.

Emma changed quickly into a pair of short shorts and a t-shirt. Even if it was January, she still liked to sleep in shorts. It made her feel warmer under the blankets (and it gave her more of a reason to cuddle with Zack, though she would never admit that).

She walked out of the bathroom, but as soon as she did, Zack turned her around and led her back inside. He pulled her shirt up so her stomach was showing.

"What do you see?" he asked.

"A bellybutton ring." She studied the sparkly infinity sign hanging from her bellybutton.

"That's it?"

She really looked at herself. "I don't know, Zack."

"You wanna know what I see?" she met his eyes in the mirror. "I see someone who is absolutely perfect. I see long, dark hair, hazel eyes, a cute little nose, and a beautiful smile," He touched her nose, making her smile slightly, "and those dimples. I see someone who is so tiny, but still so full of life. I see small shoulders which always seem like they're carrying the weight of the world. I see little hands," Zack lifted her hand, intertwining their fingers, "that I love to hold with mine. It reminds me that even if you seem strong, you're still so fragile." He put his other hand on her stomach. "I see a skinny stomach that is incredibly muscular from all those years of cheering." He let go of her hand and moved both of his hands to her hips. "I see your curvy hips, and your surprisingly long legs for how short you are. I see a girl who I have known since the day she was born, who has a lot of confidence, loyalty, and isn't afraid to stand up for what she believes in. I see my best friend." He kissed her cheek. "You're beautiful, Em. You're perfect."

Emma had tears in her eyes. She turned around, her shirt falling to cover her stomach again in the process. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. "Thank you."

"I love you." Zack told her, kissing the top of her head. Without shoes on, she was even shorter than usual, so it was kind of hard to reach her, but he managed.

"I love you too."

Zack took Emma's hand and led her back to his bedroom. He layed down on the bed and moved the blankets back so that she could crawl in next to him. She cuddled into his side, resting her head against his chest and closing her eyes.

Maybe Zack was right. Maybe she wasn't fat.

Zack hoped that she had _really_ heard him, and that she wouldn't do something drastic, like Courtney had done a couple of months ago. He kissed her forehead.

"Night, Princess."

"Night." He turned off the light.

**Paige**

"Well look who it is! The birthday girl!" Nate called out as he and Chloe J approached their usual table. Paige looked up from her phone and smiled at them. "Happy Birthday!"

"Thanks."

Nate put a large cake down on the table in front of her. It had white icing with little pink and purple flowers around the outside and said 'Happy Birthday, Paige!' in purple.

"It's beautiful!"

"I picked it out." Chloe J flipped her hair over her shoulder. She took the lid off of the box and stuck eighteen candles into it. She pulled a lighter from the backpack and started to light them.

"Are you allowed to light candles at school?" Nate questioned.

"Don't know, don't care." Chloe J turned around. "Now, Leah!"

The lights in the cafeteria went out, only letting in some natural light from the windows and the glow from Paige's candles. That's when she heard the singing.

"Happy Birthday to you!" she looked to her left and was surprised to see Emma ,Courtney, Zack, Maddie, Brittany, and Connor come into the cafeteria. She didn't know why they were here, especially since they go to Madison and school started at the same time for both schools.

"Happy Birthday to you!" she looked to where Nate and Chloe J were sitting on either side of her, each of them smiling. Hunter joined them, taking a seat on Chloe J's other side. Paige saw doors opening on the other side and Gabe and Mia entered, going to them quickly.

"Happy Birthday, dear Paige! Happy Birthday to you!" the whole school joined in. She blew out her candles, making everyone clap.

"Now get me some cake." Hunter said. Paige rolled her eyes but took the knife Chloe J held out to her (which she was _really_ sure they shouldn't have at school) and began to cut the large cake into slices.

"Happy Birthday, P." Maddie greeted, hugging her cousin. The others all followed her lead, even Zack and Emma.

Courtney threw her purse onto the ground near her feet and sat down at the table. "So, we have a great idea!" she practically squealed.

"What kind of idea?" Mia questioned, taking the piece of cake Hunter was just about to take a bite of.

"Oooh, if you weren't pregnant, I would…" he began.

"You would what?" Gabe questioned, stepping forward.

"Squeeze her to death."

"Shut up." Mia sat down on Hunter's lap and fed him a bite of the cake she had stolen. The others just laughed and sat down at the table. It was strange; it had been a while since they had all been in the same school (even if they all weren't students there).

"Well I don't know if you'll be able to participate, Mimi, but Paige, Chloe, you better listen up." Emma said. "So, everyone knows that Madison kids are punks." They all nodded to show that they understood. "Their little leader is this girl named Brianna Edwards. She's the cheer captain and all that and she bosses everyone around…"

"So basically the Madison version of you?" Hunter summarized.

Brittany gave him a dirty look. "Emma is _nothing_ like that spoiled little whore."

"Sorry!" Hunter held up his hands in surrender.

"_Anyway_," Emma interrupted, "she refuses to let any PCH people try out for the cheerleading team."

Chloe J raised an eyebrow. "Is she even allowed to do that? Have you guys tried talking to the principal?"

Courtney rolled her eyes. "The principal couldn't care less about PCH students and if we're being treated the right way. Take for example how Grace was bullied so badly she had to transfer schools, or how everyone calls Brittany 'Whacko'."

"They call you _what_?" Nate questioned.

"I had a bit of an, uh, incident." Brittany held up her hand, which wasn't bandaged anymore, but her knuckles were still bruised and cut. "It was handled."

"You guys should have seen Emma. She _tackled_ Brianna!" Courtney laughed. Connor, Emma, Zack, Brittany, and Maddie joined in, since they actually knew who Brianna was. The others just smiled, not really sure what to say.

"Can I please just finish our plan?" Emma wondered. Courtney made a zipping motion over her lips. "So the Madison cheer team had tryouts the other day and Brenna went. The first thing Brianna did was tell them that if they went to PCH, then they should just leave because they weren't worthy enough to be on her team. Brenna stayed, and after she came and found me and told me about it. She said their team is awful. Then we came up with a little plan of our own." Emma said, gesturing to herself, Courtney, and Brittany. "We're gonna get all of our PCH cheerleaders together and train like crazy. We'll be able to actually have a squad like we wanted to have for senior year, and we won't have Elizabeth there to boss us around. When we're ready, I'll challenge Brianna to a showdown. I'll tell her that the winning team becomes Madison's official cheer team, and she won't be able to back down because that would be giving up. We'll crush them and then take over the squad!"

"What happens after?" Paige wondered. "Nine of the girls from the PCH cheer team go to NYCS."

"I didn't really think of that." Courtney said to Emma.

"Emma will have full control over the squad, so it won't matter." Brittany jumped in. "It's just about beating Brianna, guys. Even if all of you NYCS girls choose not to continue with the team, we can replace you."

"I don't know about this." Paige mumbled.

"Well as long as you do this whole showdown as quickly as possible, I'm in." Mia stated.

"You're pregnant. You can't cheer." Gabe told her.

She glared at him. "Don't you dare try and tell me what I can or can't do. Pregnant or not, I will do whatever I want."

"I'm not trying to control you, Mimi. I'm just saying that some of the stunts are dangerous and you shouldn't be doing them. If you want to be on the squad and not be lifted or do handsprings or anything like that, then whatever, but you're not going to jeopardize our baby."

"Clearly." She responded with an eye roll.

"I'm in too." Chloe J announced. "You all know I love a good competition."

Emma bit her lip nervously. "What do you say, Paige? We still have to ask all of the other girls, but I wanted to clear it with the Dream Team girls first."

"C'mon, Birthday Girl! Help us achieve Madison domination." Courtney begged, pouting overdramatically.

Paige sighed. "Fine."

"Yes!" Brittany, Emma, and Courtney cheered, high fiving.

"This is going to be _amazing_!" Emma smiled. "We're gonna start recruiting on Monday!"

"We need to get to school." Connor told Zack, Emma, Courtney, Maddie, and Brittany.

"Don't kill our vibe, Connie." Courtney said to her younger brother. She got up and hugged Paige. "Happy Birthday, P."

"Thank you. Thanks for coming, you guys."

Mia got off of Hunter's lap. "Guess that means I have to return to my prison."

"You chose to homeschool." Gabe reminded her.

"Yeah, yeah." She sighed. "Walk me to my car?"

"Of course." Gabe grabbed her hand and they walked out of the cafeteria.

"I never thought I would say this, but they're adorable." Courtney observed.

"Why wouldn't you think that?" Brittany wondered.

"Cause Mia is so aggressive and loud, and Gabe is more calm and collected. I guess opposites really do attract."

"See ya, Paige." Emma hugged her cousin. Maddie repeated her actions.

"Too bad you're not 21. Then you could buy us alcohol." Brittany pressed a huge, loud kiss on Paige's cheek. "Happy Birthday!"

Paige wiped at her cheek with a smile. "Thank you, guys."

Paige, Chloe J, Hunter, Gabe, and Nate watched them leave, the six of them laughing and pushing each other. Even if Madison sucked and they hated it, they at least had each other.

**Zack**

Zack walked through the hallways of Madison in determination. He hadn't even known who Tate McClelland was, but lucky for him, Tyler Drake had a class with him and described him. Now, he was searching for the boy who had brought down Emma's already damaged confidence a little further.

"Hey, you Tate McClelland?" he asked a boy that he already knew was him.

"Uh, yeah. And who are you?" Of course, he had the typical rich boy attitude.

"We need to talk."

"Excuse me?"

Zack grabbed his arm and shoved him towards the door. "I said we need to talk."

Tate rolled his eyes, but walked out of the school. Zack followed and as soon as they were out of sight of the cameras, he punched him directly in his right eye. He fell to the ground and then grabbed his face in shock.

"Dude, what was that for?"

"You know Emma Morgan?"

"What does she have anything to do with this?"

"She's my best friend and I don't appreciate you calling her fat. You should never, _ever_ comment on a girl's weight and think that's okay. Clearly your parents didn't teach you any manners though, so I'm doing it for you." Zack grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him up. "Now, you're going to text Emma and tell her the party is cancelled, and after that, you're gonna leave her alone."

"No way! She's hot, and I heard she's easy…"

Zack slammed him up against the wall. "Don't even finish that sentence. You will do what I say. Do I need to tell you my name?"

"What is your name going to do?" Tate scoffed.

"It's Zack _Corinthos_." He smiled in satisfaction when the other boy's face paled. "Now text her."

**Madison PCH Kids**

"Hey." Emma greeted as she walked into the cafeteria, taking a seat next to Courtney. She saw the little black notebook her best friend was always carrying around and her eyebrows furrowed as she quickly closed it. "What's that?"

"Nothing."

"Court, seriously?" the two girls never lied to each other and she wasn't about to start now.

Courtney sighed. "It's kind of a like a journal. It's embarrassing." Emma didn't press her on it anymore. "Did you find an outfit to wear to that party tonight?"

"Yeah, but it's cancelled." Emma said with a sigh just as Maddie and Brittany sat across from them.

"What is?" Brittany questioned.

"Yesterday this Madison kid Tate McClelland invited Emma and I to a party, but apparently it's cancelled."

"He texted me during first period." Emma explained. "This sucks. Now we have nothing to do tonight."

Brittany looked at Maddie, but noticed that her attention was focused elsewhere. She followed her eyes and saw Tate McClelland, who she only knew from one of her electives, walk towards them with a black eye. Both girls glanced at each other and then back to Tate, who had suddenly turned the other direction. They saw Zack was glaring towards him, and then he changed his expression to a smile and sat on Emma's other side.

"Zack, what was…?" Maddie began, but the older boy shook his head. The juniors knew there was a _lot_ more to that story, but they also knew better than to bring it up if Zack had specifically told them not to.

"Paige didn't really seem that excited about her birthday." Courtney said as Connor came over, sitting on Maddie's other side.

"She's probably just annoyed. I would be too if I had to go to school on my birthday. I'm so glad it's in July." Brittany stated, biting into an apple.

"That's so weird. I never thought about that. Out of the six of us, only Zack and Connor ever have school on their birthdays." Courtney laughed. "Sucks for you guys!"

"I had school on my birthday once." Maddie reminded her. Her birthday was August 17th, and one year school had started on her birthday.

"Yeah, but that was rare."

"I don't understand why we didn't have a party for Paige." Brittany said. "I know things are awkward between everyone else, but we could have done something."

"We would, but Paige has never really talked about wanting a big party." Emma told.

"So? I wouldn't point it out if I wanted a party either! I would just expect you guys to know!"

Courtney scoffed. "Britt, you planned your surprise birthday party when you turned 14!"

Brittany smiled. "And it was a great party, wasn't it?"

"I don't know why everyone is trying to sugarcoat it." They all looked at Maddie. "The reason why Paige didn't have a birthday party is because of her break-up with Zack, and because of the fight that was never really fixed between her and Emma." Her older sister opened her mouth to speak, but she interrupted. "I'm not blaming either of you, and I think it's just as much her responsibility to fix things with you as it is yours. No one wanted to throw a party and possibly have a big, awkward fight, and no one could plan a party and just not invite Emma and Zack or it would turn into a big, awkward fight."

"As much as it sucks, Mads is right." Connor agreed. "We've all just drifted too far apart."

**NYCS PCH Kids**

"I thought PCH's food sucked until we came here." Chloe J said in disgust as she put her tray on the table. It had something on it that resembled lasagna, but didn't look appetizing at all.

"Why did you get that?" Gabe wondered, eating a Dorito out of the bag he had bought from the vending machine.

"I didn't want to. I asked the lunch lady if she had something less disgusting and she put _this_ on my plate." Chloe J pushed it away and grabbed Hunter's potato chips out of his hand.

"Chloe J!" he whined, reaching for the bag. She leaned over and held it out of his grasp.

Paige joined them, sitting down with French fries and chicken rings from the snack line (which always had a _huge_ line- the reason Chloe J had avoided it and gone through the regular line).

"Thanks, P." Hunter grabbed her chicken rings.

She rolled her eyes, but let him have them. But as soon as he put them in front of him, Chloe J pulled them away and gave him back his chips.

"I'd rather have these." She said, taking a bite of one.

"You annoy me more than anyone else on this planet." Hunter told her.

"You can have my lasagna if you want." She offered, pushing her tray towards him.

Hunter grimaced and looked at it. "You know, I actually just considered eating that until I saw the hair in it."

"Ewww!" Chloe J, Paige, and Gabe all said together.

Nate was the last to arrive at their table with only a Gatorade. Their table was round, and the order was Chloe J, Hunter, Paige, Nate, and then Gabe. The five of them always sat together, and no one else ever sat at their table with them.

"So…today was kind of weird." The others looked at Paige for more of an explanation. "I'm surprised Emma came."

"Why?" Hunter asked as he stole one of the chicken rings off of Chloe J's plate, making her slap his arm. "Excuse me, they were mine first!"

"I'm hungry!"

"Actually, they were _mine_ first." Paige corrected.

"I'm not surprised." Gabe said. His cousin looked at him. "Paige, she's always gonna be there for you. No matter what has happened, Emma still loves you. She's just going through a tough time right now and trying to find a way to deal with it."

"Maybe we should all stop making excuses for her." Nate suggested. The others looked at him, Chloe J and Gabe immediately going on the defensive. "I'm not trying to start any problems here…"

"Then maybe you should just stop talking." Chloe J said with a glare. Hunter, Gabe, and Paige weren't surprised to see her protectiveness over Emma come out immediately, even though there had been some distance between the two girls.

"Just hear me out. We've all been saying, 'she'll get better, it happened with Mia'. But Mia wasn't all by herself. She had Gabe to get her through everything."

"And Emma has Zack." Gabe stated.

"Emma also has different problems. I'm not trying to make what happened with Mia seem less significant than it was, but she was kicked out by her parents and her little brother died. Emma was in an abusive relationship with her boyfriend, who nearly beat her to death, she fell through a tunnel and got hypothermia, she was kidnapped and buried alive next to the body of one of our classmates, and then after all of that, she was put into a school where she is bullied every day. Plus, they're different people. Mia actually acknowledged that she had a problem and she asked for help. Emma doesn't think anything is wrong."

"And you know this how?" Chloe J questioned.

"I called her the other day and asked her about her drinking. She got really defensive and told me not to call her again if I was going to question her and hung up on me."

Gabe sighed. "She's in a bad place right now. Zack seems like he's got it under control. I trust that he'll come to us if he needs help."

Nate still didn't think that was the best option, and Paige kind of agreed with him. Chloe J and Hunter stayed unusually quiet; they weren't sure how to feel about the situation.

But Gabe knew his older sister, and he knew that she could get through this. She was Emma Morgan, after all.

**Brenna and Leah**

Leah started laughing as soon as she saw her best friend. "Oh my God, this never gets old!"

Brenna rolled her eyes. Leah thought it was hysterical whenever she wore her school uniform. The two girls had decided to meet up at Kelly's. Since they were at different schools now, they didn't get to spend as much time together and they vowed to stay close no matter what.

"It's been two months, Leah. I would think that you were over this by now."

"I can't believe you have to wear a tie!" Leah tugged on the end of it. Brenna smiled, but pushed her hand off.

"So, how was school?" the brunette wondered.

Leah sighed. "Boring. I don't understand why only _three_ sophomores from the Crew transferred to NYCS." Out of the eight sophomores in the Crew, the only ones who had gone to NYCS were Leah, Nattie Cassadine, and Ashlyn Falconeri, leaving Brenna at Madison with Livvie and Logan Davis, Carrie Corinthos, and Julian Quartermaine. "Basically, I just hang out with Nattie since Ashlyn usually does her own thing."

Ashlyn was now six months pregnant and chose to stay more to herself. Her boyfriend, Corey Spinelli, had been killed by the TMK and it had affected her badly.

"Well Nattie's one of our closest friends, and at least Ashlyn is bearable. I have to go to the same school as Livvie." Brenna groaned.

Leah smiled. "I know that deep down, you want to be best friends with her."

"Please. I haven't been able to stand that girl since birth. The only person I really talk to, besides Emma, Zack, Britt, Court, Connor, and Maddie, is Carrie." Technically, Livvie and Carrie are both Brenna's nieces, but they don't really acknowledge that fact.

"We really need to widen our friend circle." Leah stated as they entered Kelly's. They spotted three familiar faces and silently decided to join them.

Like the seniors and juniors in the Crew, the sophomores and freshmen tended to stick together. So when Leah and Brenna pulled out chairs at the table where Katie Morgan, Ava Zacchara, and Jacelyn Jacks were sitting, the younger girls weren't surprised.

"Hey." Katie greeted with a smile. "Nice uniform, Bren." Katie, Jacelyn, and Ava also went to NYCS, so Brenna was the only one in an NYCS uniform.

"I don't know why you're all so fascinated with my uniform. You all have siblings that go to Madison."

"We don't." Ava spoke for herself and Leah. Their older siblings- Daniel, Chloe J, Christian, and Lukas- all went to NYCS too.

"Guys, Brenna's uniform is the least of our concerns right now." Jacelyn reminded them. "What are we doing tonight?"

Just as she finished speaking, her phone went off, along with Ava, Katie, and Leah's. They all checked their messages.

"Who is it? What does it say?" Brenna questioned, craning her neck to look at Leah's phone.

"Some junior from NYCS is having a party tonight." Katie explained. "We should go."

"It sucks that none of us have our licenses." Leah pouted.

"But Luke does." Brenna said. "That's why I go with him to all of the parties. It's not as embarrassing if you get dropped off by your boyfriend."

"Can he take all of us?" Jacelyn wondered.

"I'm sure he will. I'll just threaten to tell my mom where he's going if he says no." Ava shrugged as she said it.

"Ava Noelle Georgiana Zacchara, you will not tell. What will I do if my boyfriend is grounded?" Brenna asked.

"Hang out with us." Katie told her with an overly sweet smile.

Brenna rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Leah, we need to go find outfits if we're going to this thing."

"I'm already one step ahead of you. My mom just got new samples." Leah looked at the freshmen. "You guys wanna come try some stuff on with us?"

"Yes!" Ava, Katie, and Jacelyn quickly followed them out of the diner.

Brenna hoped that this would be a good night. She definitely needed something to get her mind off of everything at Madison lately, and a night with Leah, Lukas, and the others might just do it.

**Nattie**

Nattie put the finishing touches on her makeup, staring into the mirror to make sure she looked absolutely perfect. Unlike her older sister, she actually enjoyed parties and she couldn't wait to go. She knew Paige wouldn't be alone tonight since Nikolas had just gotten back from one of his trips and he was in his study, but she still didn't feel right about leaving her.

"What are you getting all dressed up for?" Nattie met Paige's eyes in the mirror. Her older sister was dressed in pink sweatpants, a black tank top, and her dark hair was pulled into a low, messy ponytail.

"That party I was telling you about yesterday." Nattie closed her mascara and turned to face Paige. "P, it's your 18th birthday. You need to do _something_. Just come to the party with me."

Paige sighed. "Nattie, you know that's not really my thing, plus none of my friends are going so I would be bored."

"You continually act like I don't exist. It really hurts, you know." Nattie shoved all of the makeup on the counter into her makeup bag. "I would hang out with you. I just don't want you to regret not doing anything. This is a big day."

"It's already pretty much over, so it doesn't really matter. I would rather just spend the rest of the day in my bed in pajamas watching movies and eating ice cream.

The younger of the two shook her head. "I can definitely tell that we have different mothers. You got your mom's quiet, calm nature."

"And you like to party and get crazy, just like your mom." Paige acknowledged. She followed Nattie into her bedroom, watching as she gathered things up. "Who are you going with?"

"Well I'm meeting people there, but I'm riding there with Haley and Wes."

Paige frowned. "That's strange."

"Why? Haley is practically our cousin, and Wes _is_ our cousin. It's just a ride."

"Who are you meeting there?"

"Leah, Brenna, and all them."

"Be careful and if you need anything, call me, okay?"

"I know the drill, P. You act like I've never been to a party before." She started to slip on her high heels.

"This isn't a PCH party though and that makes me nervous. We don't know these NYCS kids that well."

"They aren't all that bad, you know. I talk to some of them in my classes, and I know that people from PCH look down on them because they don't have as much money as us, but they're not horrible."

"I know that, but I don't know them well enough to trust them with my little sister."

Nattie rolled her eyes. "I can handle myself just fine. You sure you don't wanna come?"

"I'm sure."

"Well, I'm spending the night with Carrie tonight, so I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"I love you." Paige called to her as she exited her bedroom.

Nattie didn't know why, but she had this feeling inside that she should hug her sister. She walked over to her and wrapped her arms around her. "I love you too. Happy Birthday!"

She turned and left, already excited for the night ahead of her.

**Sam**

Sam glanced at the clock. It was already midnight, and she couldn't believe that she was still awake. This pregnancy had been keeping her up until all hours of the night and it was really starting to take its toll.

She got out of bed quietly so she wouldn't wake Jason, but he was an extremely light sleeper and saw her leaving.

"Are you okay?" he questioned.

"Can't sleep. I'm gonna go get some water."

After going to the bathroom, Sam exited her bedroom. She saw that Maddie and Selena's lights were out and she was guessing the two of them were asleep. She could see the light spilling out from under Gabe's door and she figured he was still up. She didn't bother looking at Emma or Katie's rooms; they were both staying the night with friends.

She walked downstairs and into the kitchen. Sam pulled a cup out of the dishwasher and filled it with ice and water. She knew that she wouldn't be falling asleep anytime soon, so she sat down on the couch and flipped on the TV.

The channel was on one of Selena's shows, so she changed it to one of the news stations. She was immediately greeted with the sight of firemen desperately trying to contain a fire. The place looked familiar, but she couldn't think of where it was. Then, it hit her.

It was Wyndemere.

Sam turned the TV up, listening to the news reporter speak. _"…firemen have finally managed to control the flames."_ The picture changed to Wyndemere burned to ashes, and she realized that it was completely gone. _"Firefighters say that the fire started around 10pm. There have been no survivors found, and several bodies. We will keep you updated on this breaking news."_

"Paige." Sam whispered. She got up as quickly as she could with her stomach and waddled upstairs. She threw open the door to Gabe's bedroom.

Normally, she would have told Mia to go to Maddie's room, but right now, that wasn't her first priority. She looked at the two teenagers. "Do you know where Paige was tonight?"

"Mom, what are you talking about?" Gabe questioned.

"Where was your cousin tonight?"

"She said that she was just going to stay home tonight." Mia answered.

"Oh God." Sam gasped, covering her mouth with a shaky hand. "This can't be happening."

"You're freaking me out." Gabe said. "What's wrong?"

"Wyndemere just burned down." She whispered.

Gabe jumped up. "I'll go get Katie and Nattie. I know where the party they're at is."

Sam just nodded in response. Mia went over to her. "We don't know for sure that Paige was there, Sam. I'll start calling everyone and asking if they've seen her."

"They said there are no survivors, and they've already found bodies." Sam left her son's room and went back to her room. She saw Jason sitting up in bed with her phone in his hand. His face was pale.

"It's your mom." He stated, holding the phone out.

Sam took it. "Hello?"

"Wyndemere just burned down!" she could tell that her mother was crying. She had practically raised Nikolas, and now, they didn't know what had happened to him or his family. The only one that Sam knew was safe for sure was Nattie.

"I saw it on the news. Have you heard anything?"

"No, but Nikolas was in town. He had to of been there."

Sam groaned. She had thought her cousin was still in Russia. "Gabe is going to get Nattie. She's at a party with Katie and their friends."

"Meet me at the hospital, okay? I want to be there in case they get any more information."

"Okay." Sam agreed. She hung up the phone. "We need to go to GH."

"I'll get the kids up." Jason said. He had been getting dressed while Sam was on the phone and he was fully ready now.

"Gabe and Mia are already up and they know. Just get Maddie and Sel."

"Got it." He left their room.

Sam closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "You know, I never really believed in God. Too many bad things had happened to me in my life for me to think that there was actually someone up there making me miserable. After Zoe's death, my hatred for God just intensified and I couldn't believe that my baby was taken away. But after getting Rachel back, and Emma and Maddie surviving attacks from the Text Message Killer and Joey, there has to be someone up there looking over them, right? So please, please watch over Paige. I'm begging you to keep her safe." She held in a sob as she started to get ready.

Maddie pushed open the door and came in. "Mom? Is Paige okay?"

"We don't know, Mads." Sam hugged her. "But we're going to find out."

**Zack**

Zack watched Courtney and Emma laugh and talk loudly and he honestly felt happy. Neither of the girls had anything to drink and they were still able to smile, which he hadn't seen in a while. Life finally seemed like it may be getting back to normal.

His phone vibrated and he reached over, seeing 'Mia' written on the screen. "Hey Mimi."

"Have you seen Paige at all?" she asked immediately.

"No, not since this morning. Why?"

"Where are you?"

"At Courtney's with her and Em. What's going on?"

"Wyndemere is completely burned to the ground. There are no survivors, and they've been finding bodies but they haven't identified them yet. Sam is freaking out, and we're just praying that Paige wasn't there."

"Hold on." Zack put his mouth over the receiver. "Have either of you heard from Paige?"

"No." Emma answered, Courtney agreeing.

He moved his hand. "They haven't heard from her either."

"Can you guys just get to GH? Gabe and I are going to pick up Katie and Nattie now and Alexis is trying to track down all of Nikolas's kids to see if they were there."

"Yeah." Zack hung up.

Courtney looked at him. "What's wrong?"

Zack studied both of their faces. Even if Emma and Paige weren't as close, they were still cousins and they loved each other a lot. And Courtney and Paige had drifted apart, but they were best friends since they were kids. He took a deep breath.

"Can you just hurry up and say it? Bad news will never be easy." Emma said. She was biting her lip in the telltale sign that she was nervous.

"There was a fire. Wyndemere is completely burned down. No survivors and there are unidentified bodies. Everyone is thinking that Paige might be one."

Emma immediately got up and started looking for her keys. "I need to go home."

"Princess, I'm gonna drive you to GH to meet with your family." He took the keys from her hand gently. "You coming, Court?"

"Uh, yeah." Courtney nodded. She looked so troubled in that moment that Zack wanted to sit down and reassure her, but they didn't have time for that.

He led the two girls out of Courtney's room, the smiles on their face from less than three minutes ago completely gone. They walked to the car quickly and quietly, getting in without making any noise.

He didn't know what they were getting ready to find out, but he prayed that his ex-girlfriend was somehow alright.

**The Cassadines**

Nattie looked down at her hands and felt them shaking. She couldn't believe that half an hour ago she was dancing and having a good time with her friends, and now, she was on the way to the hospital to find out if any of her family members were alive.

Katie wrapped an arm around her and gave her a small smile. Gabe and Mia stood silently behind them, waiting for the elevator to open up on the floor they needed. Silent tears poured down the two younger girls' faces.

The doors opened and Nattie immediately walked out. "Aiden!"

The second oldest of the Cassadines turned around. He sighed in relief and went to her. "Nattie!"

She ran into his arms and he lifted her up, hugging her tightly. "They told me they didn't know if any of you were alive!"

"We didn't know if _you_ were okay." Aiden told her. He put her down and kissed her forehead. "Where were you?"

"At a party."

"No matter what, it's gonna be okay." Aiden's girlfriend, Josslyn Jacks, reassured her. "We're here for you."

"W-Who else is here? Was Dad at home? Or Spencer? What about Paige? Where is she?" Nattie was near hysterical. She was closer to Paige than anyone in the world, and she couldn't imagine her older sister being killed.

"No one has heard from Dad. I talked to Spencer ten minutes ago, he had been out with Izzie, so he wasn't at home. When we call Paige, her phone goes straight to voicemail. No one knows if she was at home when the fire started."

"Colton and Aubrey?"

"They were both with their mothers. Spencer offered to call them."

Nattie looked at all of them. "What if Dad and Paige are dead? What's gonna happen to me?"

"We'll figure it all out. Right now, we don't know what happened." Even though Aiden was trying to reassure his little sister, he knew that the chances of Nikolas and Paige being alive were slim to none. He started to mentally prepare himself for two more losses.

Josslyn wrapped her hand in his. "We don't know what happened yet." She whispered so the teenagers wouldn't hear.

"I know that."

"Then get that frown off of your face." She stood on her toes and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "It's going to be okay."

"We don't know that, Joss."

"I know it. I'm going to help you, and your siblings, get through whatever comes next, okay?"

"Okay." He agreed. He grabbed her hand and the six of them went towards the waiting room where the others were supposed to be.

Aiden looked ahead and saw a girl with long, dark hair. His heartbeat immediately sped up. "Paige?"

The girl turned around and he was relieved to see that it was his sister. Nattie pushed past him and ran.

"Paige!" The two girls hugged tightly and Nattie started to cry. "We thought you were dead! How are you okay?"

"Aubrey called me and asked me to come over." Paige could barely speak before Aiden smashed her in a hug.

"What about Dad?" Nattie asked hesitantly.

"I don't know, Nat. He was still home when I left."

Aiden, Paige, and Nattie were silent. They all knew that Nikolas was most likely dead, but they weren't sure how to react.

"Hey." Aubrey greeted as she joined her siblings. Their relationship was still a bit awkward since she had only known she was related to them for about two and a half months, but she was getting pretty close to both of her sisters.

"Hi." Aiden said back. He gave her a quick hug.

"Where are Spencer and Colton?"

"Spencer was going to pick Colton up and then he said he would be here." Aiden responded. He noticed that Gabe, Mia, and Katie had gone to stand by Sam and Jason, who were in the corner of the waiting room with Maddie and Selena.

Paige glanced towards the elevators just as they opened. She saw Zack, Emma, and Courtney exit, and as soon as she met her cousin's eyes, the smaller girl came over.

Emma crushed Paige in a hug, feeling the tears well up in her eyes. "I thought you were dead." She whispered.

Paige held her tightly. "I'm okay, I promise."

_Should Zack follow Courtney's advice about waiting to start a relationship with Emma? _

_Do you think it's time for Chloe J to step in since she is realizing that Emma does have a problem? _

_Should Nate go through with Lindsey and Noah's plan to try and get Emma?_

_Thoughts on the Brittany and Brenda situation?_

_What did you think of Emma and Zack's talk?_

_The Dream Team girls have all agreed to help with Madison Cheer Team Takeover! Do you think it'll work?_

_Was Zack wrong to threaten Tate? Was he doing it because he called Emma fat, or because he's jealous that she was going to go out with another guy? _

_Did you think I had really killed Paige?_

_Is there anything you want to see more of? Less of?_

_Please leave your thoughts and any ideas you have!_


	5. An Attempt to Tip the Scales

**Chapter 5: An Attempt to Tip the Scales**

_Characters:_

_Rachel Janacek (Sam and Sonny)- 23_

_Emma Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 17_

_Gabe Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Maddie Morgan (Sam and Jason)- 16_

_Katie Morgan (Sam and John; raised by Jason)- 14_

_Selena Morgan (Stella and Tyler; adopted by Sam and Jason)- 4_

_Morgan Corinthos (Carly and Sonny)- 29_

_Josslyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 22_

_Courtney Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 17_

_Connor Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 16_

_Jacelyn Jacks (Carly and Jax)- 14_

_Chloe J Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Christian Hunter (Maxie and Matt)- 17_

_Lukas Spencer (Maxie and Lucky)- 16_

_Leah Zacchara (Maxie and Johnny)- 15_

_Ava Zacchara (Maxie; adopted by Johnny)- 14_

_Daniel Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 17_

_Mia Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 16_

_Allie Webber (Olivia and Steve)- 14_

_Izzie Zacchara (Claudia)- 23_

_Clay Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 22_

_Zack Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 17_

_Hunter Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 16_

_Brittany Corinthos (Sonny and Brenda)- 16_

_Brenna Corinthos (Sonny and Claudia)- 15_

_Lindsey Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 23_

_Nate Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 17_

_Noah Scorpio-Drake (Robin and Patrick)- 16_

_Spencer Cassadine (Nikolas and Courtney)- 28_

_Aiden Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 22_

_Paige Cassadine (Nikolas and Emily)- 17_

_Aubrey Crowell (Nadine and Nikolas)- 16_

_Nattie Cassadine (Nikolas and Brook Lynn)- 15_

_Colton Cassadine (Nikolas and Elizabeth)- 14_

_Wes Janacek (Kristina and Kiefer)- 16_

_Haley Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 16_

_Logan Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Livvie Davis (Ethan and Kristina)- 15_

_Molly Lansing Webber (Ric and Alexis)- 28_

_Addie Lansing (Ric and Elizabeth)- 16_

_Cameron Webber (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 29_

_Jake Spencer (Elizabeth and Lucky)- 24_

_Brendan Webber (Elizabeth)- 17_

_Stella Hunter (Elizabeth and Matt)- 16_

_Alec Barrett (Brenda and Aleksander)- 23_

_Ashlyn Falconeri (Lulu and Dante)- 15_

_Lila Rae Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 28_

_Jamie Quartermaine (Dillon and Georgie)- 17_

_Tanner Quartermaine (Dillon and Lulu)- 16_

_Julian Quartermaine (AJ)- 15_

_Grace Quartermaine (Skye)- 14_

_Tyler Drake (Lisa and Patrick)- 17_

_Ian Niles (Lisa)- 14_

_Carrie Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 15_

_Ryan Rosco (Faith)- 17_

_Dominic Rosco (Faith)- 14_

_Prue Webber (Molly and Cam)- 0_

_Henry Spencer (Lindsey and Jake)- 0_

_Sophia Janacek (Rachel and Kiefer)- 4_

_Kailey Franco (Franco)- 16_

_Reed Worth (Maggie)- 16_

_Rhiannon Deusa- 16_

_Lauren Grayson- 16_

_Brianna Edwards- 17_

_Deceased:_

_Bella Jacks (Jax and Brenda)- 15_

_Mason Zacchara (Olivia and Johnny)- 15_

_Jazzie Corinthos (Sonny and Kate)- 14_

_Lola Zacchara (Claudia and Nikolas)- 14_

_Ben Lovett (Ethan and Lisa)- 15_

_Liam Drake (Elizabeth and Patrick)- 15_

_Matt Zacchara (Lulu and Johnny)- 17_

_Joey Falconeri (Dante and Brenda)- 17_

_Trevor Alcazar (Skye and Lorenzo)- 16_

_Taylor Corinthos (Michael and Abby)- 14_

_Parker Ruiz (Manny)- 16_

_Corey Spinelli (Spinelli)- 15_

_Bailey Spencer (Lucky and Siobhan)- 15_

_Max Franco (Franco)- 15_

_Lily Mir (Leyla and Aleksander)- 15_

**Paige**

Spending the night in the hospital had been rough for the Cassadine kids, especially after they found out that Nikolas's body was identified as one of the ones that had been burned. There were three others also, belonging to the cook, butler, and maid.

Ever since then, Paige had felt completely numb. She and her father hadn't been close, but he was still the only parent she had left. At 18 years old, she had lost both parents. She wasn't sure what would happen now. She was technically old enough to get an apartment or something, but what would happen to Nattie?

Almost everyone had called Brook Lynn, but she had yet to return any phone calls. Nattie was an emotional wreck and Paige knew that she needed her mother, but it didn't seem like that would be happening. Sam was doing a pretty good job at filling in though, and she had been sitting with the fifteen year old for the majority of the night.

Now, it was almost nine o'clock in the morning and Paige's aunt, Alexis Davis, walked in. She had been at the hospital for a while, but then she said she had some business to take care of and went home. Clearly she had showered and collected some documents because she was holding her briefcase.

"I know this might not be the best time for this, especially with everyone's emotions running high, but we need to discuss the most important part of Nikolas's death." Alexis began.

"Aunt Alexis, I'm sorry, but it's kind of inappropriate to worry about the business right now." Spencer said from where he was sitting.

Alexis looked at him. "I'm not talking about Cassadine Industries; I'm talking about custody of your sisters. Now, Nikolas had primary custody of Nattie and obviously sole custody of Paige. Paige, you're eighteen years old, but since you're in high school still, I wouldn't recommend moving out on your own."

Paige just nodded her head. She wasn't sure where she wanted to go, but she knew one thing that had to happen. "Nattie and I have to stay together."

The aging lawyer nodded. "I figured that you would say that. Now, your father left custody of both of you to Brook Lynn Ashton in case anything should happen. Since she has been out of the picture for so long, and she's not answering any of our phone calls, Nikolas has stated he would like custody to go to your godparents. Paige's godparents are Jason Morgan and Elizabeth Webber, and Nattie's are Lulu Spencer Falconeri and Dillon Quartermaine."

"Absolutely not." Paige spoke out immediately. "I will not be living anywhere near Elizabeth."

"And I barely know Aunt Lulu, and she's not even with Dillon anymore. Plus we want to stay together."

"Your father also put that if either of you have objections, then it will be open to you and your family members to decide where you both go." Alexis looked at everyone. "Here's what I want you guys to do. Paige and Nattie, go take a walk or go to the cafeteria or something and discuss who you would be the ideal person for you to live with. I want to speak to all of the adults, please. Anyone else, find something to do."

Paige and Nattie stood, looking at each other hesitantly. They walked away from the others, thinking about where they would want to go live.

**Sam**

Sam studied the adults standing around. Alexis was still sitting down with her briefcase. She and Jason stood together, along with Josslyn and Aiden, Spencer and Izzie, Aubrey's mother Nadine Crowell, Kristina and Ethan, and Molly and Cameron.

"I know it's a lot to ask, but these girls need a place to live. Remember, Paige just turned 18, so once she starts college, it will most likely only be Nattie staying with you."

"Can I say something, please?" All eyes turned to Nadine. "I know that I don't know the girls very well, and that I only told Nikolas about Aubrey less than three months ago, but I would be willing to take Paige and Nattie if no one else is. They could get to know their sister, and I know what it's like to raise a teenaged girl. Plus, I only have one child, while most of you have multiple teenagers, new babies, or you're pregnant."

"Thank you, Nadine." Alexis smiled at her.

Sam studied the blonde woman. She had liked Nadine when Nikolas dated her (though she always been Team Emily) and she knew that she would take good care of the girls. But something inside of her knew that wasn't the right arrangement.

"Jason and I will take Paige." She announced. The others looked at her. They all knew that it made sense; Sam and Nikolas were cousins and they had been close, and Emily was Jason's sister, so they were both related to her and had her best interest at heart, plus Jason was Paige's godfather so it was partly honoring Nikolas's wishes.

"I figured you would say that." Alexis looked at Spencer and Aiden. "What do the two of you think? Any objections?"

"I'm not very close to either of them. I don't think they would even want to live with me." Spencer stated.

Aiden and Josslyn were staring at each other having a silent conversation. She nodded, so he looked at his aunt. "If no one else wants the girls, then we'll take them. I just don't think they would really want to live with us, so we probably won't be their first choice."

Alexis turned to Sam and Jason. "You definitely want Paige? Both of you?" they nodded. "What about Nattie?"

"We'll take her too." Sam said.

"We'll have to talk about it." Jason said at the same time. They looked at each other. "Sam, we've got our five kids, Mia, a baby on the way, and Mia and Gabe will be having a baby too. That's a lot."

"They are our family, Jason. How can we say no? And how can we split them up?"

Sam could tell that Jason was conflicted. She just prayed that he would see things the right way.

**The Cassadines**

Sam and Jason had insisted their children go home and take Zack and Courtney with them, Spencer made Izzie go home and sleep, Kristina had to work, Molly had to get home to Prue, and Aiden had practically forced Josslyn to go to work, so all that was left at the hospital was Alexis, Sam, Jason, Spencer, Aiden, Paige, Aubrey, Nattie, and Colton.

"Did any of you know about this?" Spencer put a manila envelope on the table everyone was sitting around.

Paige, who was sitting closest to it, picked it up. She pulled out some kind of papers and a picture. "What is this?"

"I found them in Dad's office yesterday. He sent me in there to get something and I saw these and grabbed them. I was going to ask him about them, but I never got the chance. Apparently he and Brook Lynn were in the process of getting a divorce. Look at the picture."

Paige looked down at the picture that was behind the papers. She saw her stepmom with another man, and there was more than one picture. She glanced towards her right where Nattie was sitting and saw that her sister had seen them too.

"Paige, you know how you asked me to look for Brook Lynn?" Sam asked. The newly eighteen year old nodded. "That's what I found. I went to your father first so that he could handle telling you, and Nattie, about what was going on."

"So was she even really on tour?" Nattie demanded. Paige could tell she was getting angry by her voice, but she didn't blame her. How could her mother just leave her behind? Paige knew that if her own mother had the choice, she would have never left her.

"Yes, but it ended months ago. She had found this man, and she was planning on asking for a divorce."

"Why didn't she ever come home? We called her so many times during the whole TMK thing, and she promised that she would be home soon! How could she just leave me like that?" Nattie yelled. A few tears slid down her cheek. "Was she ever going to come back to Port Charles?"

Sam shook her head. "No, she wasn't."

Nattie started to sob. Paige reached out and hugged her. "If my own mother didn't love me, then who else is going to want me?"

Jason got out of his chair and walked across the room. Technically, Nattie was his cousin, but he saw her as more of a niece. He leaned down so he could look into her eyes.

"You've always got a home with us, Nattie." He looked at both of the girls. "If you want to, both of you are welcome to come and live with us."

Paige turned to her sister. "What do you think, Nat?"

Nattie hugged Jason tightly. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." He kissed her forehead, and then went to Paige.

She squeezed him as tight as she could. "You guys were our first choice, you know."

"It was never really a choice. Sam and I were fighting for you, no matter what."

"Thank you for taking Nattie too. I know she's not as much related to you as I am…"

"Stop. We love both of you, and you're both our family. It's no trouble at all." Jason kissed his niece's forehead. "I'm warning you now that things get a little crazy at our house, and it's gonna be sort of crowded. We're thinking about building a house though, so you would get to design your own bedrooms."

"Really?" Nattie questioned.

"Well we can't have you sleeping on the couch, can we?"

Alexis looked at her daughter. "I'll need to have you sign these papers."

"What are they?" Sam wondered.

"It's granting you custody of Paige, and temporary custody of Nattie. We are still going to need Brook Lynn's permission. I'll do everything I can."

"Thanks, Mom." Sam hugged her.

She knew that it was going to get crazy. They were going to have twelve people living in their house by the time Mia had her baby in August. But, as she watched Paige and Nattie smile and talk with Jason, she knew it was the right choice.

**Emma**

Emma walked with her hand and linked in Courtney's, both of them completely silent. They (and Chloe J) had been there when Emily died and tried to comfort Paige. They saw her at her worst time, and they didn't want her to ever have to feel that way again.

Even though Emma had barely spoken to Paige lately, she still was her family. She loved her a lot, and she would do anything for her, but right now, she wasn't sure what she could do. She didn't know what it was like to lose a parent.

Zack opened up the door to the Enchantment, letting both of the girls go in before him. Emma wasn't surprised to see that Chloe J and Nate had beat them there.

"Hey!" Chloe J jumped up, hugging both of the girls. "How is she?"

"We didn't really talk to her much. She was kind of sticking with Nattie, and we figured that was what was best for both of them. She's taking it hard though, as expected." Zack answered. He sat down on the recliner. Emma came over to him and sat on his lap, leaning back against him. Chloe J, Courtney, and Nate all sat on the couch.

"So what do we do?" Chloe J questioned. "How do we help her get over this?"

"You never really get over it." Nate told his cousin. "But what helped me the most after my mom died was knowing that you were all there for me."

"But this is different." Courtney reminded them. "This is the second parent that Paige has lost. She's an orphan now."

"It's so sad." They all looked at Emma. "Everything can change so quickly. Yesterday, Nikolas was alive. Now, he's gone, and he died on Paige's birthday, no less. She's going to remember that forever and her birthday is never going to be a happy day for her again."

"We'll help her, Princess." Zack promised.

"But what if we can't? I just don't understand how we can make this better. At least when Emily died, Paige was still pretty young. But she's 18 years old now and she understands a whole lot better. She's not ever going to be the way she was before."

"Probably not, but we can help her get as close as possible. It doesn't matter if it's hard. She's our friend, Emma. We have to help her." Nate told her. "Even if we can't, we have to at least try."

"Maybe we could have a sleepover here tonight." Chloe J suggested. "That way, she'll know that we're all here for her."

"That sounds like a good idea. I'll call her." Courtney offered. She pulled out her phone and dialed Paige's number before putting it on speed dial.

"Hello?"

"Hey P. How are you doing?"

"I honestly don't know."

"I'm at the Enchantment with Emma, Chloe J, Zack, and Nate. You wanna come over and have a sleepover tonight?"

"Thanks for offering, but I kind of need to be with Nattie right now. We just found out that Brook Lynn never had any intention of coming back to Port Charles. She found someone when she was on her tour. I asked Aunt Sam to try and track her down, and she found out about Brook and this new guy and told my dad and he was filing for divorce. We're just gonna go over to Aubrey's and stay there tonight."

"Okay. If you change your mind, then call us. We love you, and we're all here for you."

"Love you, Paige!" the other four shouted.

"I love all of you too. Bye."

"Bye." Courtney hung up. "That's intense."

"It's terrible, for Nattie especially. She basically just lost both of her parents too." Emma bit her lip. "I wonder where they're going to be living now."

**Mia**

Mia walked into the Metro Court hotel. She had agreed to meet Daniel and Allie for lunch, considering she hadn't seen them in a couple of days and she missed them. That was the only thing she regretted about leaving her parents' house; she didn't get to see her siblings nearly as much.

She walked into the restaurant part and was surprised to see Josslyn. "Hey Joss."

"Hi." Josslyn said, sounding exhausted. "You meeting your friends?"

"Daniel and Allie. I'm a little late, so they should already be here. What are you doing here?"

"Aiden forced me to come. He said that I would be more useful at the hotel than at the hospital. I just don't know how to help him and it's stressing me out." She ran a hand through her hair. "And I didn't sleep at all last night, so I'm beyond tired."

"That sucks." Mia grimaced. "You'll know what to do with Aiden. If you really love him the way I think you do, then it'll just come naturally."

"Thanks, Mimi. I hope so." Josslyn let her walk past her and to her table. Mia took a seat next to Allie.

"Hey guys." She greeted.

"How's Paige?" Daniel wondered. "I heard about what happened to Wyndemere on the news."

"She's safe, but she's far from okay. Her father was killed in the fire and the whole house was burnt down, so everything that belonged to her is gone."

"That's terrible." Allie said sadly. "I hope all the Cassadines get through this."

"They will. They have no choice but to keep going." Mia opened up her menu, though she pretty much knew it by heart. "What are you guys getting?"

"Steak and mashed potatoes." Daniel answered.

"Chicken Caesar salad." Allie replied. "What about you?"

"Chicken and shrimp pasta." Mia closed her menu. The waitress came over and took their orders, and then it was quiet.

"Mom really misses you guys." Allie said, breaking the silence.

Mia sighed. Allie was living with Olivia again and she seemed to be happy, especially since their over critical and overly judgmental father wasn't there. She wasn't sure what Daniel's opinion was on their mother, but Mia definitely knew her own.

"I miss her too." Mia stated carefully, taking a drink of her water. She wasn't just going to sit there and bash her mother, but she did have some pretty strong thoughts on Olivia Falconeri.

"You guys should come back home." Allie was a lot quieter when she said that. "I miss us all being together."

"Absolutely not." Mia turned towards Daniel. She had figured his thoughts were similar to her own, and his words just confirmed it.

"But why not?"

"I like living with my dad. Mom just sat by and let Steve treat Mia however he wanted. I'm not even mad about him pushing me up against a wall or anything else he had ever said to me. I'm mad about how he treated his child, his own flesh and blood, and Mom didn't say a word."

"She's changed, Daniel. She loves you guys and she wants us all to be together again. Dad's out of the picture."

"But for how long? Until Mom needs some money? Allie, you know Mom hasn't worked in fourteen years, right? Where do you think she's getting money from?"

"Child support and once the divorce goes through, she'll get spousal support."

"And if Steve decides not to pay it? Then what?" Daniel shook his head. "No. I think Mom just wants us back because she wants the big, fat checks my dad has always given her, and then she'll get more money because she'll be getting some for Mia too. I'm not going back there until she proves to me that she's changed, and it'll probably be too late by then. I'm starting college soon and I'm going to go somewhere far away so I can get away from the insane, messed up town."

The youngest of the siblings turned to her older sister. "What about you, Mia? Why can't you come live with Mom?"

"Allie, I'm two months pregnant. I need to be with Gabe."

"Teenagers raise babies from two different houses all the time."

"And how many of their relationships survive?" Allie was quiet. "Exactly. Would I like to live with Mom? I don't know. I haven't talked to her in a while and I don't exactly believe that she's as different as you say she is. But I'm going to have a baby soon. I need to put that baby first, and the best thing for him or her is to have both of their parents together."

Allie completely dropped the subject, but the rest of their lunch was awkward. Mia was ready to leave, and she could tell Daniel was too. He had picked Allie up and volunteered to drop her back off, so after dessert, they left.

"I'll see you guys later." Mia hugged both of her siblings. "Love you."

"Love you." Daniel and Allie said together. They went to their separate cars.

Mia didn't even bother turning the radio on for the drive back to the penthouse, which was unusual for her. She usually sang loudly, but she had too much on her mind.

When she arrived at the penthouse, she was relieved to see that no one was in the living room. She didn't want to explain her lunch to any of the other Morgans.

She knew Gabe was home because she had seen his car in the parking garage, so she went to his room. He had clearly just showered and he was laying in his bed.

"Hey Mimi."

"Hi." Mia walked in, closing the door behind her. "I'm sorry, did I wake you up?"

"No, I was just trying to take a quick little nap. How was lunch?"

"It was good to see Daniel and Allie again, until Allie started talking about how much my mom wants us to live with her."

"Really? What did you say? What did Daniel say?"

"Daniel flat out said no, and I did too. Why should I put myself back in that situation?" she took off her shoes and layed down next to him. Mia rested her head on Gabe's chest and he immediately started playing with her hair.

"Paige and Nattie are going to live here."

"Wow. Do Emma, Maddie, and Katie know?"

"Uh-huh. My parents sat us down and told us about an hour before you got here."

"How do you feel about that?"

"I don't really care, but that's probably because I'm a guy and I know that my parents won't make me share a room with anyone."

"Maybe I should start considering living with my mom." Mia said.

"Why?"

"The penthouse is getting extremely crowded. Your parents have you, Mads, Emma, Katie, Sellie, they'll have a baby boy in three months, we'll have a baby in seven months, and now Paige and Nattie too? There's not really any room for us here, Gabe."

"I guess you're right, but I don't want you to go. You shouldn't have to be forced to go back to your mom." Right as he finished speaking, Sam walked into the room.

"Hey guys." She smiled at the two teenagers, even though they really weren't supposed to be in the same room together. Sam just let it go, considering it was only 2 o'clock and not bed time yet. "Could you listen for Selena? She's in her room playing, but I'm going to try and take a nap since I didn't sleep all night."

"Yeah, that's fine." Gabe answered. "Mom, don't you think the penthouse is getting a little crowded? I think it's time for an expansion."

Sam smiled. "Your father and I are thinking the same thing. I'll see you at dinner." She left the room just as Emma came back in.

"Hey, I thought you were staying at the Enchantment." Mia stated.

"No, Paige wanted to stay at Aubrey's with her and Nattie, so we decided to just not do it. Also, we're gonna hold off on the whole cheerleading takeover thing. Britt, Courtney, and I talked and we decided that it would probably be best to let everything settle down with Paige, Aubrey, and Nattie before we attempt to take over Madison's cheer team."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Mia agreed. "I hope you do it soon so I can help."

"Sorry Mimi, it doesn't look like it's gonna happen for a while."

Mia sighed. "Well there went all my hopes and dreams."

Emma rolled her eyes with a smile. "Shut up." Mia laughed. "I'm gonna go shower." She left the room.

Gabe kissed his girlfriend's forehead. "You need to try and get some sleep too. It's not good for the baby that you were up all night."

"I'm fine." She said through a yawn.

"Yeah, sure you are. Close your eyes."

Mia did as he said and she could feel herself quickly drifting off.

**Josslyn**

Josslyn laid in Aiden's bed, her arms wrapped tightly around her boyfriend. He had cried earlier, and now he was just silent. It was kind of unsettling; he had always been the strong one while she fell apart, but she knew it was her turn to step up now.

"How can he just be gone? He's my dad, Joss." Aiden said quietly.

She ran a hand through his hair. "I know, but he's in a better place."

"What are we going to do without him? I know he wasn't much of a father, and he usually cared more about Cassadine Industries than his children, but he was still our dad."

"He loved you all so much. Sometimes, people just have a hard time showing it." Josslyn was speaking from experience. She had no problem telling people when an outfit was ugly or they were doing something that bothered her, but she couldn't open up when it came to her feelings, especially loving someone.

Aiden's head turned towards her suddenly and she saw his eyes get bigger. It scared her a little bit.

"Aiden…"

"Marry me." He blurted out.

Her mouth fell open. That was definitely the last thing she expected. "What?"

"You heard me. Life's too short, Joss. I love you, and I want you to marry me."

Josslyn's heart and her head had a little battle, and then she just let her heart take over. "Yes. Yes I'll marry you."

Aiden kissed her gently. He reached over into the table next to his bed and pulled out a box. He opened it up and there was a huge ring just like the one Josslyn had always imagined she would have one day. He slid it onto her finger.

"It's perfect." She whispered, feeling herself tear up. She was not a crier, so she didn't understand why.

"Lindsey helped with it."

"How long have you had this?"

"Mmmm, about three months."

"Three months?!" Josslyn nearly shouted. "Why didn't you say something sooner?"

"I was waiting for the right time. I wanted us both to be ready, and I finally think that we might be."

"I love you, Aiden. I know I don't say it a lot, but I do."

"I know. I love you more." He kissed her forehead.

Josslyn cuddled into his arms, hoping that she was giving him even a fraction of the comfort he gave to her. Then it hit her.

She was engaged!

**The Morgans**

"Good morning." Sam greeted as Paige and Nattie walked into the penthouse. They each only had a small bag with them; Jason had given them some money to go shopping yesterday and buy a couple of things until everything was sorted out with Nikolas's money, and then they would have time to actually go and buy everything they need.

"Hi." Paige smiled at her. Nattie followed her older sister's lead. While she was also related to Sam and Jason, she wasn't nearly as close to them as Paige was. It was kind of strange that she was going to be living with them now.

"You guys can just sit on the couch. We're about to have a family discussion." Sam told them. Paige looked over and saw that only Maddie and Selena were in the room.

"Where is everyone?"

"Still in bed." Sam went to the stairs. "EMMA! GABE! MIA! KATIE! Get down here now!"

Jason walked in from the kitchen. "Hey."

"Hi, Uncle Jason." Paige hugged him.

"How are you?"

"We're doing…okay." Paige said quietly. She definitely wasn't okay and Sam, Jason, and Maddie picked up on that, but how else could they expect her to be? Her father had just died.

Katie was the first downstairs. Her long, dark hair was wild around her and she was wearing purple silk pajamas. She came in and sat next to Nattie on the couch.

Mia was next. Her hair was pulled into a bun on top of her head and she was wearing blue Ravens shorts and a pink and black cheer t-shirt. She sat down on Maddie's lap.

"You okay?" Maddie questioned.

"Headache." She rubbed her temples and closed her eyes.

"Where are Gabe and Emma?" Jason asked.

"I don't know, I was in Maddie's room." Mia responded.

Gabe came downstairs and he was already dressed for the day. He sat on the floor next to Maddie.

Emma was the last one to come into the living room. She had bags under her eyes, her hair was the same as it had been last night, and she was wearing sweatpants and a PINK jacket.

"Em, did you even sleep?" Gabe wondered.

"No, not really." She sat down next to Selena, pulling the four year old onto her lap. "What's going on?"

"Since our family is growing pretty quickly, we figured it was time for a little talk." Jason began. "First of all, as you all know, Paige and Nattie will be moving in with us. For now, Paige and Emma are going to share a room and Nattie and Katie. Mia, you will still be staying in Maddie's room, and don't think that either of you have been sneaky. We see that she's not following the rules, Gabriel, and we expect Mia to sleep in Maddie's room every night.

Emma held in her groan. In her entire life, she had never had to share a room and she knew that she would be annoyed by sharing with Paige. She glanced over at Gabe, who was rolling his eyes at their parents' discussing Mia's sleeping arrangements.

"Now, we have an important question to ask you guys." Sam stood next to Jason. "How would you feel about moving?"

"You mean out of the penthouse? Like completely?" Maddie asked.

"We would still keep the penthouse just because of the fact that we've had it since before you all were born and it has a lot of good memories. But we would buy some land and have a house specially built for us, and you would all be able to design your own rooms."

"Sounds good to me." Katie spoke first. "Almost everyone is sharing rooms now, and once the new baby and Mia's baby come, there won't be anywhere to put them."

"I agree. We should have moved a long time ago." Maddie agreed.

"What about you, Sellie? How do you feel about getting a new house?" Sam asked the youngest member of their family.

"Can we get a swing set?"

"If that's what you want." Sam assured her. She hated that her older children had to grow up without a yard to play in, and she wanted to change that for Selena and the new baby. "What about the rest of you? Mia?"

"I honestly don't care. Anything is better than living with my mother, so if you wanna move, then so do I."

"Gabe?"

"We've outgrown the penthouse. I'll miss it, but it's time to go."

"Nattie? How do you feel?" Jason tried.

"Um, I don't really know. It's not really my decision."

"You're as much part of this family now as our children and Mia. We want everyone's opinion."

"Then I think it would be good. That way, we would have a place that we could actually call our own. I don't know about Mia and Paige, but I kind of feel like I'm intruding and if you built a house knowing that I was going to be living there, then it wouldn't be like you're just stuck with me."

"I agree with her." Paige added.

"Then that just leaves you." Sam and Jason turned to Emma. "Any thoughts?"

"Not really thoughts…it's more like conditions."

Jason sighed, getting ready for whatever she was going to say. "Let's hear them."

"I want to still be in the PCH school district. I don't want to be any further than ten minutes away from Zack's and Courtney's."

"I agree with that." Maddie threw in, Gabe and Mia nodding along since their best friends- Hunter, Brittany, and Connor- lived in those houses.

"I want us all to have our own space. I know you're saying that you're letting us design our rooms and all that, but I think we should all have our own rooms. I know that Paige and I are going to be going to college soon, and Mimi, Gabe, and Mads will be going right after us, but it's still good to know that you have a place to come home to."

Sam nodded. "We'll definitely stay in the PCH school district, and you guys can have your own rooms. I'm not sure if we'll be able to find any land available within ten minutes of the Corinthoses and the Jacks', but we'll try our best. If not, it will be no longer than twenty minutes."

"I guess that's reasonable." Emma allowed.

"I have one request too." Mia threw in. Sam was a little surprised; the sixteen year old preferred to try and stay out of the way. Sam knew it was because she felt like she was a burden (which she wasn't). "I know you guys aren't really comfortable with Gabe and I sharing a room, but I'm going to need you to make sure that my room, Gabe's room, and our baby's room are all pretty close."

"Definitely." Jason said. "Anything else?"

"I want a pool." Maddie told them. "We never got to have a pool because we live in a penthouse, and I think it would be cool to have one now."

"Not true, Mads. The Enchantment has a pool." Katie reminded her.

"Yeah, but we never technically lived there." She turned to her parents. "Why aren't we just moving in there?"

"We agreed that the Enchantment has become more of your guys' place and we don't want to intrude on that." Sam stated. "Any other requests?"

"Theater room." Katie said, quickly earning agreements from the others. "It would be so cool!"

"A playroom!" Selena cheered.

"Oooh, an in-ground trampoline would be awesome!" Mia was now looking at her phone.

"What are you doing, searching the most outrageous things you could have in a house?" Jason questioned jokingly.

"That's so cool!" Maddie said. "Look at it, Dad! It would be so fun!" she grabbed Mia's phone and showed him the picture.

Mia continued to scroll down. "There's also a zip line, an outdoor movie screen, a hammock, a backyard stream, these little cocoon things that hang from trees, a swing set fire pit…"

"Let me see that." Emma grabbed her phone. "Oh my God, we totally need that at the Enchantment!" she looked at her father. "Dad, please?"

Jason knew in that moment that he would give these kids anything. Seeing the heartbroken looks on Paige and Nattie's faces disappearing, even if it was only for a couple of minutes, and his kids and Mia _really_ smiling for the first time in months, was amazing. So if they wanted an in-ground trampoline or a pool or even a full sized football field, he would give it to them.

"I'll see what we can do." Jason looked at the picture Emma was showing him. Five wooden porch swings were attacked to a large metal frame in the shape of a pentagon. In the middle of the swings was a fire pit.

"We would need six swings though." Gabe reminded him, thinking that two people from the Dream Team could sit on each swing.

"Look at this!" Mia showed Gabe a set of pool bumper cars. "Four wheelers would be cool too."

Sam shook her head, knowing that Jason was easily being pulled into everything these teenagers were calling out. At the rate they were going, they would have to buy half of Port Charles to fit all this stuff in.

"What about you guys?" Jason turned to Paige and Nattie. "Any crazy ideas?"

"It's not really crazy, but can we get a piano?" Paige asked. "We had an instructor and we all had to learn how to play, so it would be nice to keep going."

"We can get one." Sam agreed.

"Inflatable twister!" Katie shouted from where she was looking over Maddie's shoulder at Mia's phone. "Mom, we have to!"

"Why do you need inflatable twister?" Sam looked at the phone. "Actually, that does look kind of awesome…"

"We would need a pool shower." Gabe said, pointing to one of the other pictures.

"Why?" the girls asked simultaneously.

"I'm just thinking about all of you and your long hair and the chlorine."

"He's right." Maddie agreed.

Mia searched something else and Sam and Jason immediately heard all of their kids gasp.

"What is it?" Jason questioned.

"Bowling alley!" they shouted together.

"When do any of you ever go bowling?" Sam wondered.

"Well we would if we had a bowling alley in our house!" Katie said. "Paige, Nattie, come here. You guys have to look at this stuff."

The two girls came over, sitting down next to the others. Emma grabbed her IPad from on top of the table and handed it to Mia. "Here, use this instead. We'll all be able to see better."

Sam and Jason smiled at the way that all of their children were huddled around together. Jason grabbed a pad of paper and a pen off of the desk and he and Sam sat on the couch.

"Okay, so what do we have so far? A pool- do you want in-ground or above ground?"

"In ground." They all said together.

"With a slide!" Selena cheered.

"And a diving board." Katie added.

"Okay." Jason wrote that down. "A movie theater, bowling alley, four wheelers, piano, pool shower, in-ground trampoline, outdoor movie screen, a hammock, and inflatable twister?"

"And a swing set fire pit for the Enchantment." Maddie reminded him.

"Look! A hidden room!" Mia pointed to the IPad. It was a room that could only be accessed from swinging open a bookshelf.

"Let me see that." Jason took the IPad. "I don't know why you guys would need a hidden room."

"Yeah, I guess that one is a little unnecessary." Mia gasped. "Balcony pools!"

"That would be awesome! We could all have our own floors with pools on them!" Katie said.

"Wait a second. You do realize that there are eight of you? With that, plus two babies, and the two of us? We are not having an eleven story house."

"Plus we're doing an in-ground pool in the backyard." Jason reminded.

"Skylights are so pretty." Paige said, looking at the picture on the IPad. "Can you imagine looking at the stars from your bed?"

"Walk in closets are even better." Emma stared dreamily at the screen.

Jason smiled. "All of you will have walk in closets, just like you do now." The girls all high-fived.

"I NEED THIS." Everyone looked at what Selena was pointing to on the screen. The door of a closet opened up to a slide, which went down to a waterslide that was in the house.

"That would be amazing!" Maddie agreed.

"Okay guys, we're only getting one pool and it's going to be outside." Sam stated. Maddie and Selena pouted slightly.

"A swing into the pool?" Mia asked. Jason wrote it down on the list.

"Swimming pool movie theater?" they all said together. There was a large outdoor movie screen on the back of the house and rafts in the pool that faced it like a theater."

"That might be possible." Jason added it to the list. "But remember, you could only use it in summer."

"I still want a theater room in the house." Katie insisted.

"A slide instead of stairs?" Selena questioned. Jason was confused at first, but then he saw that it was a spiral staircase with a slide attached to the other side. He wrote it down, though he didn't think they would actually do that one; too many hazards.

"Is it weird that I want that in my room?" Emma said. It was an indoor tree house.

"Jason, maybe we can do that for the baby's room." Sam suggested. He wrote it down.

"Okay, so I know you said only an outdoor, in-ground pool, but this is awesome!" Maddie showed the IPad to her parents. It was a pool that was partly inside and partly outside, saying that it was for days when you didn't want to sunbathe.

"Can you imagine how messy that would get? The floors would be soaked!"

"That's why we would have a special pool room. And then in the winter, we could swim too! We could get a hot tub put into the pool room too! Please, Dad?" Maddie begged.

Jason added it to the list, ignoring Sam's glare.

"Can we get an elevator?" Mia wondered.

Jason smiled. "Now you're just being lazy."

"Hey, pregnant girls get tired walking up stairs!" Sam nodded her agreement.

"We're not getting an elevator."

"What about a rock wall?"

"No."

"Ceiling hammock?"

"No."

"Waterfall shower?"

"No."

"But we would be able to wash our hair so much faster!" Katie protested.

"How about you all get on the internet and find pictures of stuff you want in your bedrooms? You will all have a walk-in closet and your own bathroom, so plan on that. We're gonna let you pick out all of the decorations and all that, as long as it's not too extravagant." Sam stated. The kids quickly agreed. "I know you're all dying to plan, so you can go ahead and do that."

"C'mon, Sel, I'll help you." Katie offered, carrying her younger sister upstairs. Emma, Gabe, Maddie, and Mia quickly followed, talking about all of their ideas. Paige and Nattie stayed on the couch.

"We're going to need to get some stuff for you both." Sam said. "We're getting your cellphones put onto our plans. Do you have your car still, Paige?"

"Yeah. I never really used it on the island, so it stayed parked here."

"Okay. We'll need to think about clothes, and you'll both need beds. If you want, Jason and I can take you shopping."

"Thank you." Paige smiled at her aunt. "You didn't have to let us live here, but you did and…"

"Stop. You're family and we wouldn't have let you go anywhere else." Jason turned to Sam. "Are you sure you're up for shopping?"

"I'm sure." Sam went to the stairs. "KATIE!"

Her fourteen year old exited her room. "Yeah, Mom?"

"Can you keep an eye on Selena? We're going to take Nattie and Paige shopping."

"Sure."

"And try to clear out a part of your closet. Tell Emma to do the same. We're getting beds and clothes."

"Okay." Katie disappeared back into her room.

Sam smiled at her cousins. "Let's go."

**Rachel**

"Alec?" Rachel said, interrupting the football game her boyfriend was watching. He looked at her.

"What's wrong?"

"Well you know how I went and saw Sam yesterday?" he nodded. "We talked about how I'm not really close to the kids, and she told me that I should invite them to do something. But I don't know anything about them or what they like to do."

Rachel knew that Alec knew a lot more about the Morgans than she did. His mother, Brenda Barrett, was once married to Jason (though it was a marriage of convenience, not anything having to do with love).

"I've known them all since they were born, and the first thing I'm going to tell you is that they will all stick together, no matter what. I'm not trying to freak you out, but if you upset one of them, they're all going to be against you. The easiest one is Sellie, but you already know her. She loves princesses and playing games and dressing up. Then, there's Katie. She's just like a mini-Emma, but no one realizes that yet. She's always hanging out with her friends, and she likes to have fun. She's adventurous. Maddie is the quietest one, but she observes everything. Even though she might not be super outgoing, she's easy to get along with. Gabe is going to be the hardest for you to get to know. He's closed off and he doesn't trust easily. He loves football, and he's good at it. He doesn't like to play around with girls or their emotions, mostly because the closest people to him are women. Then, there's Dimples." Rachel saw him smile and knew that he had a soft spot for her half-sister. "I know her the best because when we were growing up, she and Courtney were always around because of Josslyn. You might not guess it from looking at her, but she's funny. She will try anything once, and she never backs down from a challenge. She can make friends in any situation, and she loves to talk and laugh. That being said, she probably won't let you in right away because she's extremely protective of the people she loves, and younger brother and sisters are right at the top of that list."

"So what do I do? How do I get to know them?"

"Maybe invite them out to lunch. That way, you can all talk."

"But I hardly know anything about them."

"I can tell you the basics. Emma is a senior, and when she was at PCH, she was the cheer captain and student body president. She dated my younger brother before, but he beat her up, so she's extra cautious around men now, except Zack Corinthos, your half-brother from your biological father. She's also really close to Josslyn's sister Courtney, and Chloe J Hunter, but you probably don't know who she is.

"Gabe, like I said, plays football. He's a junior. He's dating Mia Webber, who has been his best friend since kindergarten, and she's two months pregnant. Things are rough with Mia's family, so she lives with Sam and Jason.

"Maddie is a junior and a cheerleader. She's dating Josslyn's younger brother Connor. Her ex-boyfriend, Parker Ruiz, was killed right in front of her by the TMK when he got him by a car.

"Katie is a freshman. Josslyn said that she just recently found out that Jason isn't her biological father. She's a cheerleader, like Emma and Maddie. As far as I know, she's single. She's really close with Josslyn's sister Jacelyn, and another girl named Ava Zacchara." Alec studied her. "You're never gonna know if you don't try."

Rachel picked up her cellphone and found the name she was looking for in her contacts. "Hi Maddie, it's Rachel. I was wondering if you guys would want to meet up with me for lunch…if you want, I can bring Sophia so she'll be kept busy…okay, sounds great. See you then."

Alec raised an eyebrow. "So?"

"We're meeting in an hour." Rachel went to get Sophia ready.

**The Morgans**

Rachel stood in front of Kelly's with Sophia in front of her, waiting for her siblings to arrive. She didn't know why she was so nervous, but she wanted to make a good impression on them. Sure, she had met them all, but Sam had always been there. It had never been just her brother and sisters.

The first one she saw was Emma. She had Selena on her hip and they were both laughing. Katie followed behind her, staring down at her phone. Last were Gabe and Maddie, who were walking next to each other. Her eyes met Maddie's and she immediately felt the awkwardness of the whole situation.

"Hi, Sophia!" Selena practically shouted. Emma put her down and the two girls ran into the diner.

"Thanks for meeting me, guys." Rachel greeted.

"No problem." Emma said. Katie, Maddie, and Gabe went inside, just nodding at Rachel in acknowledgment.

They all sat together at a table and their orders were taken. Surprisingly, it was Katie who took charge of the situation.

"So, why did you want to meet up?"

"I just wanted the chance to get to know you all. Sam's told me so much about you, and even Alec says things, especially about you, Emma."

Emma groaned. "Don't believe anything he says."

Rachel smiled. "It's all good things."

"Good. And if he ever happens to mention a Merry-Go-Round, just know now that he made that up." Maddie and Gabe looked at her in confusion. "Let's just say something happened when I was at a carnival with Courtney, and Joss, Lindsey, Jake, and Alec were supposed to be watching us."

"I don't even want to hear that story." Katie took a drink. "So, you want to be called Rachel, right? Not Lila?"

She took a deep breath, deciding to ask something she had been wondering for a while. "Did you all know about me?"

"Mom told us all about you. You're the reason she and Dad got together, so I guess if it had never been for you, then we wouldn't have been born. So thanks." Emma gave her a small smile.

"What did she say about me? I'm just not really sure how to ask her questions about it; I don't want to bring up old pain."

"I'm sure she doesn't really hurt as much anymore." Katie reassured her. "She's always been really honest with us. If you ask her anything, she'll answer you."

"But I don't know her that well. It's not the same with us."

"Yes it is. No matter what, you're our sister. You have the same mother as us, and she's going to treat us all the same."

At that moment, Rachel felt some sort of connection with Katie. She knew that she honestly thought of her as being her sister. Emma seemed to be opening up to her too, but Gabe and Maddie hadn't spoken once.

"So, tell me about yourselves. I want to know all about you."

"Where do we even start?" Katie laughed.

"Just whatever you think is important."

"Well, my full name is Katiana Alexis. As you know, everyone calls me Katie, except for when they're mad at me, and Alec calls me Kat. I'm fourteen, and my birthday is July 1st. You might know this already, but Jason isn't my biological dad. He and Mom were having some trouble in their marriage after they had Gabe and Maddie and they both cheated. My biological father is John McBain and he lives in Llanview, Pennsylvania."

"Have you ever met him?"

"Twice. I went there with a couple of my friends, and then he came here to see me after we got the DNA test back. He's letting me make my own decisions with all of this and I know that Jason's my dad no matter what, but I think I might want to know more about him one day. All I know is that he's a cop, he's got a wife named Natalie, and they have three kids named Liam, Sydney, and Tommy."

Rachel looked to the oldest of the group. "What about you?"

"Um, my name's Emma Joy. My parents…I guess our parents…picked my name because of my dad's sister, Emily, and they said that I was the happiest baby they've ever seen, even from the beginning, so they chose Joy. I'm seventeen and my birthday is July 26th…"

"When's your birthday?" Katie interrupted.

"November 8th."

"Mine and Emma's are in July and the twins and Selena's are in August, so they've always been right by each other. Mom and Dad say that it's stressful, but I think they like throwing all of the parties."

Emma continued. "I don't really know what else to say about myself. I don't have a boyfriend, I go to Madison Academy…"

"Do you all go there?"

"Maddie and I do. Gabe and Katie go to NYCS."

"Why do you go to different schools?" Rachel noticed the immediate change in demeanor of Emma and Maddie. "Do you guys not like it there?"

Maddie took over. "We absolutely hate it. Mom and Dad forced us to go to Madison, and they let Gabe and Katie pick where they wanted to go."

"Why?"

"We're still not entirely sure." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"What about you guys?" Rachel looked at the twins.

"My name's Gabriel Jason. The only person that really calls me Gabriel is Mia. That's my girlfriend, and my best friend. You probably already know that she's pregnant." He paused. "Can I be honest for a second?"

"Of course." Rachel agreed.

"I don't like new situations. I don't like meeting new people who I'm automatically supposed to trust. I don't like that you have connections to the Janaceks. For our entire lives, we've been taught that they aren't good people. We learned that Kiefer nearly beat our aunt to death and then," he stopped, looking at Sophia and Selena, "and then Wes came from that whole mess, who he stole away from her. He forced Izzie into a relationship and she's basically been like an older sister to us for our entire lives. I don't know that much about you, and I'm not going to trust you for a while."

"And if Gabe doesn't trust someone, then I don't either." Maddie agreed, surprising her sisters. Usually, she avoided confrontation at all costs, but it didn't seem that way with Rachel.

Rachel took a deep breath. "Can you tell me a little bit about you, Maddie?"

"My name is Madelyn Lila. Yes, my middle name is after you, and our grandmother. I have a boyfriend. I go to Madison. I've changed a lot in the past couple months, and I've learned that you can't believe everything people tell you. Even people who you think are your family can turn their backs on you." Gabe, Emma, and Katie knew that she was talking about Trevor. "Selena, tell Rachel about yourself."

"My name is Selena Claire Morgan and I'm this many." She held up four fingers. "I like princesses and toys and games and the park and puppies and chocolate and…"

"Sel." Katie said in annoyance.

"I'm special because I have two mommies and two daddies. My first mommy and daddy didn't know how to take care of me, so they wanted me to have a good home. That's why they gave me to Mommy and Daddy." She smiled at her best friend/niece. "Your turn, Sophia!"

"I'm Sophia Summer Janacek and I'm four. My favorite color is purple. I'm gonna be five on August 19th, but I have a long time 'til then. My daddy is a mean man, so I don't know him anymore, but it's okay cause I still get to see Izzie. Your turn, Mommy!"

"I was raised as Rachel Lila Janacek, and I'm 23. I had Sophia when I was 19, and it wasn't by choice but I'll never regret her. My brother, Clay, and I were always taught to think that we weren't good enough to be in our family. Everything was always about Aleksander or Kiefer, and how they would always know the right thing to do. I was only a year older than Clay, but I took my job as the oldest seriously, especially after Wesley came. The three of us stuck together because I was expected to take care of him, and I taught him about how wrong everything Theo and Kiefer were doing was. Because of that, he knows how to respect women and the proper way to act in the real world.

"I had always been told that Kiefer was my brother, so I never understood how he could hurt me the way that he did." Rachel ran a hand over Sophia's head when she spoke. "It's a relief to find out that he really isn't. Once Izzie came, she realized that Kiefer wasn't a very good guy, and at first, I honestly don't think she remembered who he was. Then, he told her and she wanted to get out, but he wouldn't let her. He tried to force her to have a child with him, but he didn't know that I had been giving her the birth control that Theo had been giving me. I would have given my life to protect Izzie, Clay, Wes, and Sophia, and I thought of them as my siblings. It's the same as with the five of you. I love them all so much, and I know that if you'll let me, I'll be able to love you too."

The food came to the table at that moment, fixing the awkward moment. Katie was content with Rachel's confession because she was already feeling connected to him. The older three, however, were a bit weary. The whole TMK experience had taught them not to trust too easily, so they were going to wait a little bit before making a decision on their big sister.

**The Jacks'**

Carly walked downstairs, seeing her three youngest children in the living room. Courtney was lying on the couch, staring at something on her phone. Connor was in the chair with his focus on the TV. Jacelyn was lying on her stomach on the ground in front of the TV and it looked like she was dividing her attention between that and her phone.

"What are you guys doing?"

"Texting Paige." Courtney responded. "She's a mess."

Carly hadn't always gotten along with Emily, and she wasn't particularly close with Nikolas, but she felt sorry for one of her daughter's best friends. She had lost both of her parents so young, one on her birthday no less. She couldn't imagine her children suffering that pain.

"Jax!" Carly yelled up the stairs. She went over and turned off the TV, earning protests from Connor and Jacelyn. "Court, sit up. We need to have a talk."

Jacelyn joined Courtney on the couch just as Jax came downstairs. Connor sat up straighter. "Is everything okay?"

"We just want to talk to you all." Jax came over to stand next to his wife.

Carly took over. "You guys know how crazy Port Charles has been lately. With all of those teenagers being killed," she paused for a second as they all remembered Bella, "and then Robin dying, and now Nikolas, your father and I have been thinking."

"I'm not moving." Courtney stated.

"Me either." Connor agreed.

"Moving isn't even an option." Jacelyn agreed.

"We're not moving." Carly confirmed. "We just want you all to know what would happen in case your father or I weren't there anymore."

"Don't say that." Courtney immediately shook her head.

"Court, it's a possibility. Cars and planes can crash, people can get sick, people can be in the wrong place at the wrong time. We just want you all to be prepared in case it was to happen. We've already discussed this, and if something happened to us, you would all go to live with Morgan and Lila Rae."

"WHAT!?" they all shouted together.

Jacelyn wrinkled her nose. "Lila Rae would _never_ want us to live there. Plus, Morgan is so boring!"

"Why can't we live with Josslyn?" Courtney questioned.

The front door slammed closed right as she spoke. "Cause your big sister is about to get married!" she held up her left handing, showing off her big, sparkly engagement ring.

"OH MY GOD!" Courtney, Carly, and Jacelyn ran over to her, asking a million questions.

"Not my little girl." Jax groaned, sitting on the couch.

"I'm with ya, Dad. I don't think I can deal with her being Bridezilla." Connor sympathized.

"When will the wedding be?" Jacelyn asked.

"I'm not sure yet, Aiden just asked me last night. Lindsey's going to be my maid of honor, but I want you two to be my bridesmaids and I'm gonna ask Emma too, and Connie, you can be a groomsman." Josslyn looked at her father. "You'll walk me down the aisle, right, Daddy?"

All of Jax's negative thoughts floated away when he saw the happiness in his daughter's face. Since she was his first child, Jax had always naturally had a soft spot for Josslyn, resulting in all of her siblings referring to her as 'Daddy's Little Princess'.

"Of course I will." Jax hugged her. "Congratulations."

Josslyn smiled up at him. "Thank you."

Carly hugged her tightly. "I can't believe you're getting married! Who would have ever thought you would be the first?"

"Mom, Michael and Abby are married."

"Yeah, but all they did was go to the courthouse and sign some papers. You're having an actual wedding!"

"It's gonna be _huge_." Josslyn said with a big grin. Courtney and Jacelyn held back their groans, knowing that their sister was about to get really annoying.

**The Corinthos'**

Dinner time came quickly, and Sonny suggested that they eat in the dining room. For the past two months they had been sitting in front of the TV, or eating in their rooms to avoid the awkwardness that came with the empty seats at the table.

"This is weird." Brittany was the first to speak as she took her usual seat. It had always been Sonny at one end of the table with Brittany, Brenna, and Lola, then Claudia at the other end, and Jazzie, Hunter, and Zack next to her, going back around to Sonny.

At the same time, all four of the teenagers looked towards the two empty seats left by their sisters. The deaths of Jazzie Corinthos and Lola Zacchara had made a huge impact on their remaining family members.

"It's so strange knowing that they'll never be here again." Hunter said. "Like if you just think about everything we've ever done with them. All of the games we played, like when we were kids in the summer and used to play hide and seek in the dark in the backyard. Or the vacations we took, or even just when we would all sit in one of our rooms together and complain about our older brothers and sisters, or our parents' rules. Jazzie and Lola will never be there for those situations again."

"I can still remember everything about them. Their voices, their laughs, the smell of Jazzie's favorite perfume. But I'm scared that one day I'll forget it." Brenna admitted.

"I'm just glad for all of those home videos Mom used to take when we were kids. It was annoying at the time, and I usually hate it when she pulls out the camera now, but we'll always have that little piece of them." Zack reminded his siblings. "Even if they're not physically here, they'll always be here. We'll always remember them."

"That's the thing I most scared of. Being forgotten after I die." Brittany said quietly. "Our friends and siblings will remember us, along with any children we have, our grandchildren, and if we're lucky enough to meet them, then maybe our great grandchildren. But what about after that? We'll just be a face in a picture and eventually, our names are going to fade away into nothing. We won't matter."

"That's a pretty morbid thought, Britt." Claudia came into the room and sat in her usual seat. She realized that both sides of her, usually occupied by the youngest members of their family, were empty and moved to sit next to Brenna instead. "But that's why we have family. So we can talk and tell stories. You know, my father hated me from the minute I was born. He never wanted a daughter, and he wasn't in love with my mother, so he just saw me as a waste. Some people, like him, deserve to be forgotten, which is why I hardly talk about him. I know that your children will probably never hear a story about him because there aren't any good memories for me to tell you, so you won't have any to tell about him, so that might be for the better. But we're not going to forget Lola or Jazzie. We'll tell stories about them to each other and your kids once they're born. Not saying that I want any of you to have children any time soon." She added quickly.

Hunter laughed. "I think that's pretty unlikely since Brenna is the only one here who is dating anyone."

"And you aren't having babies for a _long_ time." Claudia hugged her now youngest daughter.

"Trust me, it won't be happening." The fifteen year old agreed.

"Mom, how are you feeling about this whole Nikolas thing?" Zack wondered.

Claudia sighed. "I'm sad, of course. Nikolas and I weren't ever going to work out, which I should have known from the beginning, but I was at a rough point with your father and he had just broken up with Elizabeth; I still loved your dad and he still loved Emily. We were both hurt and didn't know what else to do. I will never regret that short relationship I had with him because it resulted in Lola. He was the father of my child and I'll always love him because of that and it's terrible that the rest of his children have to grow up without a dad now. But I know that he's in a better place and he's up there with Lola now."

Sonny came in, carrying a pan full of lasagna. He sat it down in the center of the table. Claudia gestured towards Jazzie's seat and he took it, leaving the ends of the table empty.

"It's strange being in here after so long." He commented.

"This is our new normal. We might as well get used to it." Hunter said, reaching for the lasagna. Zack and Brittany followed his lead, and after a moment of hesitation, Brenna did too.

Claudia and Sonny looked at each other. They weren't sure if they were ready to let go of their youngest children, but they knew that they had four more that were depending on them to step up. They both nodded and joined their children.

**The Davis-Lovett's**

Haley sat on the counter with a bag of pretzels. Even from down here, she could hear her father and stepmother screaming at each other. She rolled her eyes; would things ever change?

"Hey." Wes greeted as he came in the back door. He lifted himself onto the counter next to her. She offered him the bag of pretzels and he grabbed a handful. "Did anyone make dinner? I'm starving."

"They've been fighting for at least an hour, so no." Haley bit into a pretzel, chewing as loud as possible to block out their voices.

"It didn't work."

"How long can they possibly go at it?" Wes asked.

"Well, let's see. If they fight about me, it can go as long as two hours. If it's about the twins, it's usually at least for an hour. I don't think they've fought about you yet, so I'm not sure about that. If they're fighting about each other, this could go on all night."

Logan and Livvie came downstairs right at that moment. As soon as they stepped into the kitchen, they heard glass shatter upstairs.

"What is that?" Wes wondered.

"Mom. She throws things when she's mad." Logan started to dig around in the cabinet. "How does grilled cheese and ramen noodles sound for dinner? I'll make it." His siblings muttered their agreement, so he started to pull packages of ramen noodles out of the fridge.

"How long have they been fighting? I just got home an hour ago and it's been pretty loud since then."

"Two and a half hours." Livvie responded.

"What's it about this time?"

"Their marriage being a lie or something like that." She rolled her eyes.

"How often does this happen? You guys make it sound like a lot." Wes said.

"They've been pretty good since you came here. I think they were just trying to make a good impression. They used to fight at least twice a week." They heard something else break upstairs. "I guess they decided you like them enough."

Wes was surprised they were all taking this so well, especially Livvie and Logan. He knew that Haley would probably side with Ethan no matter what since he was her father, but the twins just acted like it was nothing.

"You know what? Let's go out. I'm sick of listening to this." Haley grabbed her keys and Logan quickly put the ramen noodles back in the pantry. The sophomores walked out the backdoor and Haley and Wes followed behind them.

"Are you okay?" Wes questioned.

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"It has to be hard listening to them fight."

"Not really. I've grown up with it practically my entire life. It's gotten a lot worse in the past couple of years, but we're used to it."

"Aren't you worried about them getting a divorce one day?"

"I don't know, I've never really thought about it. Kristina and I don't always get along, but I know that I wouldn't be happy if my dad divorced her."

"What about your mom? Would you go live there?"

"That's not really an option."

"Why not?"

"I know I haven't really told you the whole story with my mother except for that I don't spend time with her." Haley sighed, figuring she might as well tell him. "My mom, Lisa, was obsessed with this doctor named Patrick Drake, you probably know him, he's Nate and Noah Scorpio-Drake's father. He was married to their mother, Robin, but he and Lisa had a one night stand. He still was in love with Robin and he chose to stay with her and that drove Lisa crazy. She thought that if she could make him jealous, then maybe he would realize what he was missing. That's when she started to talk with my father. She got pregnant with my only a month after Tyler was born and because she hadn't waited long enough, there were some complications. I was born two months early. My dad started getting closer to Kristina, but Lisa didn't want to crowd him because that's what she had done with Patrick and he hardly wanted to see Tyler because of it. She wanted me to have the best life possible, with both of my parents. She got pregnant with Ben two months after I was born by accident. She told my dad and he told her that once the baby was born, he was taking us away, which Kristina's mother Alexis helped with and that's partly the reason why I never really liked Kristina. Lisa told me that when I was taken away from her, I screamed and cried and reached for her, but my dad didn't care. She only got to see Ben once. After we were taken away, she slept with a doctor at Mercy and got pregnant with my youngest brother, Ian. She's never been with another man since then because she completely dedicated herself to Tyler and Ian, and she wanted to try and get Ben and I back. Up until two months ago, I had always believed that she just abandoned us, but Ben never did. He always thought the best of others." She smiled sadly.

"I'm sorry for bringing it up, Hales."

"It's okay. It's just hard to talk about because I don't know who I should blame for this. My dad for taking us away? Lisa for not fighting harder? Kristina for getting pregnant while my parents were still together and then having her mom help my dad win custody? Myself for not ever making the effort to get to know Lisa?"

"It's not your fault, especially if you were told that she just abandoned you."

"But I should have known. Ben knew; why couldn't I?"

"Because you don't trust as easily." He shrugged his shoulders. "It's not always a bad quality to have. It keeps you from getting walked all over."

"But it also keeps me from opening up to people." Haley ran a hand through her hair. "I just don't know where to go from here. Talking to Tyler and Ian is one thing. They're just my brothers, and they had no say in the situation. But talking to Lisa? She could have taken us and run, or she could have gotten a really good lawyer."

"What kind of life would that be? Living on the run would be difficult. And what if she didn't have enough money for a lawyer? Yeah, she's a doctor, but she was already raising one kid practically by herself, and I'm assuming she was supporting you too since your dad doesn't really have a job." Haley nodded. "She did what she thought was best for you. You have to just let yourself be open to the idea that she's not the bad guy."

"You're right." Haley hugged him hesitantly; she wasn't really a touchy-feely kind of person. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Wes kissed the top of her head. "We better get going before Logan and Livvie starve to death."

"You know what's weird? A couple of months ago, I would have never gone anywhere with Livvie and now I volunteered to go to a restaurant with her."

"Things change and this seems like it might be for the better."

Haley would never admit it, but having Wes around to listen to her was really amazing. She just hoped nothing happened that would screw up what they had going on.

**Jamie and Addie**

"Hello, Miss Addison. Are you here to see Mr. James?" Alice greeted as she opened the door to the Quartermaine mansion.

"Yes, thank you." She took off her coat and hung it on the coat rack in the corner. "Is he up in his room?"

"Yes, would you like anything to eat or drink?"

"No thank you." Addie climbed the stairs that led to the bedrooms of the Quartermaine teenagers. She shivered involuntarily as she passed the door that still said 'Trevor' on the outside and knocked twice on Jamie's, letting herself in.

"Hey." Jamie greeted with a smile, closing his chemistry book.

"Wow, look at you. Homework on a Sunday night. Usually, you don't even bother doing it." She slid off her shoes and sat on the bed.

"Not that I'm not glad you're here, but this is a surprise."

Addie shrugged. "I just didn't want to be alone tonight."

"Where are Cam, Molly, and Prue?"

"They're home, but it's not the same. I needed to be with someone who really understands."

Jamie came over and sat next to her. "Is everything okay?"

"After everything with the TMK, I just thought things would get better. It's amazing to me that Port Charles keeps taking one hit after another." She sighed. "I barely knew Nikolas Cassadine, but what about Paige, Colton, and Nattie? Aubrey just found out he was her father and now he's gone. Things are going to change so much for them. One little thing can change your life forever."

Jamie studied her face, seeing that she was staring blankly at the wall. "Addie…"

"I don't have a lot of family, you know? The Cassadines kids have their mothers, except Paige, they've got the Morgans, the Quartermaines, all of their friends. The only people I really have are my sister, my dad, and you."

"That's not true. You've got Haley, you're friends with the majority of the Crew, you know that Sam and Jason would do anything for you since you're Molly's sister, and even though you don't want to admit it, you've got new siblings now."

"Yeah." Addie shuddered. "It's so weird that Cameron is my brother now. My brother and sister are married."

"Don't say that. It sounds so weird." Jamie said with a frown, making Addie smile. "Have you thought anymore about having a relationship with Elizabeth?"

"I feel like the only reason she wants me around is to replace Stella. I've gone sixteen years without a mother and I can keep doing it."

"Well why don't you try and talk to some of her kids then?"

"Who? Cameron, Jake, and Aiden don't have the best relationship with her. Brendan and Colton know how insane she is and even they don't really like her."

"You don't have to talk about Elizabeth. Just find out stuff about them. You've got five new brothers, and a new sister. If I had more siblings, I would want to know them."

Addie felt sad then. Jamie had lost his mother when he was ten years old and his father only had one other child, his half-brother Tanner. He had been raised in the big, empty Quartermaine mansion for the past eight years and hadn't really had much of a family since then. Sure, there was the whole Quartermaine clan, but they weren't there every single day.

"I love you." She leaned over and hugged him. "I'm glad that I'll always have you to depend on."

"I love you too." He kissed her forehead.

_Is anyone even still interested in this? _

_Nikolas is dead. Feelings? _

_Do you like it would be best for Paige and Nattie to be with Sam and Jason, or is there someone better? _

_Thoughts on Brook Lynn? How would you feel if you were Nattie? Do you think Brook will cause trouble for Sam and Jason getting custody? _

_Are Mia and Daniel being too hard on Olivia. _

_Josslyn and Aiden engagement?_

_What do you think of the requests the Morgans, Mia, Paige, and Nattie made for the new house? _

_Thoughts on the Rachel/Morgans lunch?_

_Do you think Kristina and Ethan will get a divorce? How will affect their kids?_


End file.
